


Heroes of Another Time

by AstronSouls, D_Schneider



Category: BnHA, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: 18+, F/F, F/M, Multi, TikTokFanfic, agedupcharacters, bnha - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:01:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 68,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26120017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AstronSouls/pseuds/AstronSouls, https://archiveofourown.org/users/D_Schneider/pseuds/D_Schneider
Summary: Saku and Desca are talking when their phones completely glitch out, sending them into another time and another realm. They find some familiar faces and must try and get back home before time runs out. Will they be able to get home, or will someone who for saw their coming be able to keep them in this realm?
Relationships: DescaCosplay, DescaThrush/OC, SakuraFlor/Dabi, SakuraFlor/Hawks
Comments: 6
Kudos: 20





	1. Confusion

**Saku's POV**

“Hey, you are the editor, make our giggles look good.” I state with a grin as I pace my room, biting one of my fingernails. “Oh, that’s not all on me hunny, you do it too!” I can’t help but laugh as my best friend tries to protest about the antics we do during shoots, they aren’t any better than me when making CMV’s. “Oh no, Desca no!” a hand moves to cover my face, as I feel my cheeks redden. 

“Oy no!” I turn my back to the bedroom window, “that part was so…oh god they are going to love that, and I am going to be a tomato!” I glare at the phone screen as Desca laughs on the other end. “You wouldn’t!?” Running my hand through my purple hair and sitting down on the edge of the bed, shaking my head in defeat. 

Suddenly my phone shocks me, “Ouch!” I pull it away from my ear and look at the screen, “Oh now what…” Tapping the screen but all it does is flicker brightly and then go dark, “come on...Desca?” I hold the phone back up to my ear again but hear nothing; then the screen flashes as the phone sends out a jolting shock of electricity. I slump over on the bed blacking out, phone still loosely held in my grip.

**~Time Shift~**

I slowly wake up and feel like a semi hit me in the chest, “what the fuck happened?” I slowly open my eyes but slam them shut at the bright light from above. “Ugh, great. Sun’s out in full force.” I cough a bit as I move to stand feeling heavier than normal, I try to open my eyes again, scrunching my nose and squinting to try and filter some of the sunlight. Then I hear voices not too far away, “He’s getting up, should we help him?” It sounded like a woman’s voice, “No Maria! Knights don’t like help from people like us!” a man’s voice gruffly shouts. 

Standing and trying to balance, I feel something on my face and reach up to touch it but instead of skin to whatever is on my head, I hear a metallic sound and eyes shoot open wide. _I have a helmet on?_ I think and then quickly take the helmet off and look at my hands, gauntlets encasing them as I hold the helmet. “Okay…what the hell is going on?” I state loud enough to be heard but not really expecting a response. I look over myself and I am in a full set of oddly light weight steel plated armor?!

For now I ignore the people discussing helping me, I look around and see trees, a small dirt road and a…a pond! I quickly walk to the pond and realize this armor is super light. As I get to it I peer over to look at myself, “Holy shit!” I was suited up in a dark grey armor, with swirls engraved into the steel plating. Some royal purple cloth that seemed to flow from under the left and right pauldrons and down the front and back with cotton padding underneath for cushioning. Turning from side to side, the engravings were vine-like but airy as they wrapped around each piece of steel armor on the arms and legs. The helmet matched with etchings in the face mask and then went up and over the head in wisplike clouds, making it seem like the armor itself was about to take flight at any moment.

But the thing that stuck out, the one thing that catches my eye the most…large purple wings. I flex my back and the wings respond and I gasp, eyes tearing up at the thought of these wings being mine. “I have wings! I have mother fucking wings!” I shout and jump helmet hitting the grass but having to catch myself as I almost slip into the pond, “whoa!” The wings flap and raise me up into the air about two feet off the ground and I hover over the pond. “Oh shit, Desca is gonna go nuts!” I frown as I say Desca’s name, I still needed to find her, if she was even here in this world with me. Slowly I drift back to the ground and get my footing, finally turning my attention back on the two strangers who were now six yards away and staring at me.

Looking a tad bashful I pick up my helmet and walk over slowly, “Hello, could you maybe help me?” I stop a couple yards away and look the two over. A man and a woman in simple peasant clothes and still staring. “You two okay?” I ask and shift my weight and move my hand to rest on something on my belt. Looking down I chuckle not realizing I had a sword. By now the woman was shaking her head and coming out of her stupor, “Hello Sir Knight, apologies for staring, we are not used to seeing Knights so up close.” She looks down at her shoes and kicks the dirt. 

My mind is going a mile a minute as I realize they don’t realize I am not a man, “Oh uhm…not sir, miss. I’m not a man.” I move some hair out of my face, and both stare again. “Okay, I get this may be different but can you two stop staring?” Immediately they both look away and clear their throats. “Apologies Milady, female Knights are not unheard of, just rare.” The man replies and bows his head in greeting, “My name is Joel, and this is my sister Maria, what can we help you with Lady Knight?” He straightens up a bit and I realize he towers over me. Stepping closer so I do not have to yell and smile “Thank you, where are we?” I ask and both their faces look confused, “I’m not from around here and I fear I don’t know where I am.” 

Maria looks up from under black bangs, “You are near the city of Musutafu, just down the path a few miles you’ll see the city walls.” She shuffles on her feet and I shift my weight, “thank you, I appreciate the help.” They both bow their heads as I walk by and I nod in their direction, figuring that is better than asking why they are doing that. Then I realize, I am a noble, I shake my head and start walking when I hear one yell at me. “You could just fly, instead of walk!?” Nodding I slip the helmet on and take a deep breath “Okay Saku, don’t kill yourself.” I crouched a bit and when I felt my body was in the right position, jumped into the air, wings spreading to catch the air underneath. Trying to practice how often it would be necessary to catch more wind, it was only when I felt how my wings cut through the wind . . . and a cloud that I then looked down, my eyes widening in disbelief. I was a lot higher in the air than I had expected. 

Joel and Maria looked like just large ants as I begin to panic, and I feel the air whip by my face as I start to fall. Blinking I try to concentrate and unfurl my wings again and just before I become a splat on the ground, I catch the drift and soar back up into the sky. “Fuck okay, concentrate!” I growl at myself as I glide through the air, not really wanting to become part of the permanent scenery. I test the wings out, turning a bit and then swooping as I follow the path towards the city that I can make out in the distance. “This is pretty cool, I always wanted wings and now I have them!” With my excitement I do a quick barrel role but quickly straighten out as I again did not have complete control. 

Unbeknownst to me, I had someone following me as I approached the town; that is until I felt a large weight slam into my left side and we both go barreling to the ground. I am able to turn to where my wings and back are facing the ground as I collide with it, making a large rut in the dirt before we both slam into a large boulder on the side of the road. “Fuck!” I grunt out and try to push the thing on top of me off, it was not budging. “GET OFF!” My voice was low and threatening as I try to push whatever was on me off; that is until I lock eyes with the dreamiest eyes I had ever seen. 

Hovering just above my face was a mess of blond hair and pools of gold staring back at me, a little scruff on his chin and his jawline that looked to be chiseled into sharp angles. My voice catches in my throat as I stare back at those eyes, swallowing hard as I recognize who it was and not for a second believing this was happening. “Why are you flying towards Musutafu?” the voice was smooth like honey and a bit low, I knew that voice, and there was no feasible way to mistake it. Just like from my world, a formidable presence that somehow managed to simultaneously exist as an overwhelmingly attractive, and terrifying. In her world, the man in front of her was considered the number two hero, Hawks, how would that hold true here? 

I blink as the words register in my brain, “I-I was going there t-to find my way.” I state and grunt as a forearm lays across my chest plate, pinning me in place and I find a feather blade inching closer to a small sliver of exposed neck. I strain my head to the side to try and avoid the blade I already knew could be very deadly. “Are you lost? I don’t recognize your colors, where are you from?” Hawks asks, only lessening the pressure on my chest a little, the sword still at the ready just in case. I sigh and try to relax my body as I lick my lips, I was getting way too distracted by those damn eyes! “I am a foreigner who is lost and trying to find her best friend and her way back home.” 

He stares at me for a second, and then slowly gets up and puts his feather sword back amongst his other primary feathers. Keeping his distance, he just looks at me as I pick myself up off the ground and dust myself off, “Okay, I get that I am a stranger but was that really neces…” I trail off as I look over and Hawks is now leaning against a tree, looking at me, his eyes unreadable. He had armor on underneath a tan-gold cloak that had fur trim around the collar. “What?” I ask with slight annoyance and remove my helmet, running a hand through my hair to get it out of my face. 

“Strangers nearing my city that I don’t recognize I tend to…do my job. Even if I have better things do but I always do my duty and you were flying towards my city. Now you say you are looking for someone?” He pushes off the tree and stuffs a hand in his pocket, his eyes still trained on me, but I still couldn’t read him for the reason why. “Yes, my friend Desca is missing and I am looking for her so we can head back home…if we can get back home.” I mumble the last part and sigh as I stretch my back and my wings extend again before falling back to a natural resting state, “I’m Saku by the way.” 

“Nice to meet you Saku, if you are headed to town, I suggest going by the UA Training grounds, check in and see if anyone has perhaps seen your friend.” He gives me a long once over, that made every fiber of my being come alive. Was this some new instinct, or was there something more to what he was looking for? With a lazy salute, Hawks spreads his red wings behind him, “stay out of trouble, Saku, and stay safe.” He gives a sly smile and then launches into the air, most likely finding a place to relax. 

Rolling my eyes, I jump into the air and start towards the city again as a hand moves to my left side, I wince feeling the tenderness and realized it would probably bruise badly. “Great, first knight I meet and its that hunk of a man Hawks…what a great first impression Saku, ugh!” Taking a deep breath, I fly straight to the town gates. Hawks had said something about training grounds, might as well go there first. Maybe Desca had landed there? I could only hope, because otherwise, she would not believe what had just happened! 

As I land at the gates a small woman approaches me with some papers and a quill in her hand, “Greetings and welcome to Musutafu city, oh my what lovely wings!” the woman walks around me and admires the wings and I stand there tapping my foot on the ground. “Thank you, uhm can you direct me to the UA Training grounds?” I ask as she comes back into view, seeing she was writing stuff down on her papers. “ Yes, I can in a moment. Tell me your name Lady Knight please.” I reply with my name and she writes again. “Alright and your power?” She asks looking at me expectantly. 

“My power?” I ask confused for what seemed like the millionth time today. “Well you are a knight, so I assume you have a power, all knights do. Sir Hawks has what he calls Fierce wings, come to think of it you have similar wings.” She states and writes something else down. Rubbing my temples in frustration, I can’t help but snap, “Look I don’t know, all I know is I can fly, I’m fast, and I can take a decent hit and survive. By the way who are you?” I ask as she stops writing and examines my feathers. 

“My name is Liza, and I keep track of everyone who comes and goes from this city.” She looks at a feather and suddenly pulls and it comes free, “Hey, don’t pull my feathers out!” I narrow my eyes at her and frown. “My, your wings are the same yet different. Your feathers a bit sharper on the edges but smaller than his.” Liza writes more notes and lets the feather go, to my surprise it guides itself back to where it belonged in my wings; however, she didn’t seem phased. “Yes, you seem to have a different version of fierce wings my dear which is quite interesting.” I was about to ask something when someone jumps down from the gate wall between us, “Oh, Katsuki don’t do that!” Liza states scowling at the young man who just shrugs. 

“Hawks came by the grounds saying a new person was arriving and would need to be shown where we are located. So…I was sent.” He looks at me with skepticism and I knew I was in some kind of My Hero world. “Katsuki, you will have to wait. I don’t care how good you think you are, step aside.” The older woman states and to my surprise he moves out of the way. “Thank you, Lady Knight you will need to follow Katsuki to the grounds, but I do need a little more information for the records.” She asks a few more questions, age…family and so on. I answer as best as I can and soon I was following Katsuki to the training grounds. 

I follow close behind as the streets were crowded, as we move through the crowds, I noticed my wings would make small adjustments to help those in my vicinity. Catching an apple and rolling or flicking it back where it belonged before anyone was the wiser. Catching a boy before he was going to trip and fall, the weight of the child almost went unnoticed, aside from the grunt the boy made as I walked briskly behind Katsuki. “Huh weird…” I state to myself which garnered me a look from Boom Boom Boy, though I know he did not know I knew. “You talk to yourself often or is this a new thing for you, Lady Knight?” He asks me as we turn into a clear alley way. 

“No just wrapping my head around stuff…” I get cut off by a scream down the way and both of us look to see two men trying to take something from a woman. Instantly both of us move and I will a few feathers towards the men. Liza said I had a similar power to Hawks so why not test it out? Four feathers detach and torpedo towards them. Two hooking the cloak of one man and pinning him against the wall. The other two are picking up what was dropped as Katsuki throws small blasts at the second man’s feet; making the guy fall over. Before he could crawl away Katsuki was looking over him, a crackling hand outstretched at him. “Don’t move unless you want to be blasted into pieces!” 

I run up and notice the first man still pinned to the wall, “What do we do with them?” I didn’t know where a jail or anything was, so I decided to let him decide. “We don’t have to wait long…” Katsuki says with an arrogant smile, and a few seconds later some soldiers rounded the corner and stopped taking deep breathes. “Thank you, Sir Knights, we can take it from here.” Katsuki relaxes and the same time I do as well, and the feathers drop the guy on the wall. “You’re not so bad stranger, though I could have handled it easily on my own.” 

Rolling my eyes I just shrug, “See something happening I react on instinct.” I was about to say more when I felt a tug on a wing and I look over to the girl we just saved. “Thank you for your help.” She holds up one of my feathers and I smile as I accept it back, although the moment she releases it, the feather instantly puts itself back amongst the other feathers, just as the ones earlier had done too. “Of course, stay safe.” I reply and she slowly walks away. “Well well, seems like you’re already winning people over. Watch it though, that top spot will be mine, you got me?” Katsuki states through his teeth as he watches the girl leave and then turns to me, “Hawks can’t be the number one knight forever.” He all but growls out his words as he starts to walk again. 

Following behind I bite my tongue because really, not going to get into that right now, especially with a hot head like him. Soon enough we walk onto the UA Training Grounds and I am greeted with the head trainer, Aizawa. _’can this get any weirder?_ I ask myself. “Greetings, welcome to the training grounds. Hawks flew by and gave us a heads up you were coming.” Aizawa did not smile, simply nodded for me to follow as Katsuki went his own way once more. 

“You all seem to be very efficient here” I state as I follow behind him through the training grounds. He was not dressed like anyone else on the premises, with leather pants with a black leather top, signature scarf of course and he had some makeshift slatted steel goggles; I assume were for his eyes. After all, if Hawks and Katsuki had their powers that she had seen in her world, it wouldn’t be impossible for Aizawa to still cancel out others’ abilities with his eyes alone. “We do pride ourselves on that, Hawks said that you are looking for your friend?” He turns and stops to watch some students sparring in a large circle. I move to stand next to him, the dust being turned up around them from the students moving around the circle, their movements precise, neither individual dropping their guard, even for a sparring match. “I am,” I said softly, a sense of foreboding filling my chest. Maybe Desca hadn’t landed near here after all, “a very good friend of mine, goes by the name Desca. We got separated and I don’t even know where to start looking.” 

Aizawa nods his head, “I see. I have a Knight who may be able to find her in a decent amount of time.” He turns to his left and shouts, “SHOTO!” A few seconds later a smaller knight appears, with red and white hair. _oh yes, this is going to be an interesting adventure for sure_ I think as I smile. “Yes sir?” Shoto asks as he stands next to us. “This knight is looking for a friend of hers, Desca is the name…I want you to find them for us.” Shoto simply nods and walks away without a word. “Not much for words, is he?” I ask with a hint of amusement in my voice. 

“No not really.” The black-haired man crosses his arms, “What about you, I heard you helped Bakugou on your way here with a few thieves?” Nodding, I shift on my feet “yes, they were trying to steal something.” I shrug not really thinking it was that big a deal. “I did what was right.” He nods and motions for me to follow, “yes you did, a stranger in this city and you don’t think twice about helping. A good quality for a knight and your wings are interesting.” He trails off and looks at me again, almost contemplating what he needed to say next. 

I cock my head to the side, “Something you wish to say? I prefer if you get straight to the point.” His stare was making me slightly uncomfortable and I was missing my headphones at this point, so instead I rub the side and back of my neck. “A knight who has almost identical wings to the top knight is definitely of interest to us, I would like to test your wings if you are alright with that?” Now that I wasn’t expecting this but I mean, maybe I can figure out what I can and can’t do . . . right? What would it hurt? “Sure, I wouldn’t mind, I would like to know myself what I can do. Perhaps it’ll help us get home when we find Desca.” I state with an awkward smile. 

“Let’s get started, I am sure Shoto will find your friend soon enough.” Aizawa looks at me again before leading me deeper into the training grounds. My mind wanders to Desca, hoping that she was alright and that we would be together again soon but maybe not too soon so I could perhaps run into Hawks again too…

“Sir Aizawa, not to be a stick in the mud, but how will Shoto find my friend, Desca? I haven’t even told you what she looks like yet?” As though coming to the same realization, I wasn’t prepared when Aizawa turned around and hastily shouted out- 

“SHOTO!!!” 

**TBC**


	2. Sparring & Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It has been a few days. Aizawa is testing Saku’s skills and powers as well as frustrating her. And someone reveals themselves and that they could help, but do they really want too? Are Saku and Desca finally reunited?

Crashing like a sack of rocks thrown against an unyielding boulder. My body was torn between remaining in the fetal position to feign a death pose and either attack Aizawa when he got close, or to attempt to fly and catch him off guard. Deciding on the latter, I shot my leg out to catch him off guard and to throw off his balance. Seeing him shuffle backwards, I pulled my wings forward to try to draw up some dust to hinder his vision so his damn eyes wouldn’t be fixed on me. However, just as my wings were fully extended did the bastard throw out his scarf once more, binding my wings in painfully tight. Grunting in exertion, Aizawa releases the bindings and takes a step back, preparing himself for another attempt to knock him off of his feet. Standing up unsteadily, I readied myself to come up with a new plan, even while I could do was seething with frustration for the man in front of me. Exertion, my true enemy was unyielding and cruel, and his name, was Shota Aizawa, asshole extraordinaire. 

_’Fuck me, he’s really putting me through the wringer right now!’_ I think as I dodge his blasted scarf again, this was the fifth time he had erased my power and I have fallen flat on my damn face! I brush hair out of my face in time to see a large booted foot land on my chest and I slide across the ground on my feet. Once more near the boulder I had consistently been crashing into, so far I have dubbed this beautiful boulder Desca 2.0, always there to support me, never giving her ground, overwhelmingly sturdy, and proving that rock still beats scissors, even in the Medieval Alternate Universe past. _‘Missed you, Desca, it’s been so long since we last ran into each other like this!’_ Feeling my back-foot land against the boulder, I took this opportunity to extend my wings to catch the air behind me to keep from being bounced around. “Ugh, come on!” I growl out as I anchor my feet, “Haven’t we discovered enough?” 

Aizawa straightens up, “Let us recall, your feathers can carry quite a lot of weight on each, they move quickly and can be sharp as daggers if needed. They almost immediately rejoin your wings once their job is done. Only thing we haven’t tested is if you have swords.” He walks up and looks at my wings, examining them for the hundredth time. “Hawks can pull two large feathers from his primaries to make swords…but your wing tips are solid.” He tugs on both sides and I grunt, glaring at him. “Hmm…perhaps if you try?” 

Not sure what to exactly do minus just pull, I grab a larger feather and tugged, but it didn’t budge. I grabbed another and it wouldn’t budge, at best the feather would move side to side, but a passing breeze made them move more than my hands could, “I don’t know, looks like no swords for me.” I sigh and wipe some dirt off my pants. By this point all my armor was lying in a pile by a wooden table and I was just in leather pants and a cotton tunic. Crossing my arms, this whole thing was beginning to feel like a farce to keep me from looking for and finding Desca. All I’ve done is get beaten and told to try again, at this point Boulder Desca knew me more intimately in my new form than I did! 

“Perhaps,” Aizawa meticulously rewrapped his binding scarf around his neck, even though it still looked like a bundled mess to me, “we may not have found it yet but pulling on every feather would be a waste of time and tiresome. Get cleaned up and get some food, we can go again tomorrow.” Aizawa states, his form already retreating from the training grounds. 

“Again?!” I asked almost completely exasperated, my wings automatically fluffing out in my frustration, “this is the third day of this, and where is Shoto…you said he was your best tracker!” I was getting very impatient and this so-called training was wearing on me. I moved to gather my things when a gust of wind whips my hair around, I turn around and give a sly smirk, something in me just knowing the cocky bastard that had shown up. Whether through intuition, bird-like instincts, Boulder Desca being a great wingman, or my secretly compiled information on the piece of man that made my mind draw a blank, my heart flutters like I was about to go into cardiac arrest, or the way the wind seemed to carry his unique scent and sound through the air.

“Well if it isn’t Saku, have you been here training all this time?” Keigo landed effortlessly, smirking. His own wings automatically shielded him from the wind that seemed to exist exclusively around the training grounds, yet he seemed nonchalant as he relaxed, hands in his pockets, eyes fixed to my own, his hair a whirlwind mess, and yet none of it seemed out of place. If only my hair understood how it needed to behave in this new world, all it wanted to do was blow in my face and blind me at inconvenient times. 

Tucking a piece behind my ear, it was overwhelming to be in front of him, for multiple reasons, “I may or may not have been figuring out my powers…” I trail off as he steps closer and I swallow…hard. If he got too close like this to me, would I combust? Part of me really wanted to find out as his frame met mine levelly, our wings almost the same height and width, my poor heart pounded in anticipation, if only the distance between us could be closed. 

“How about a little friendly sparring between two knights?” He asks but his tone was not threatening, it was inviting and…I could not put my finger on it. 

“If you two spar, allow us to clear the training grounds” Aizawa had turned back around to see what the commotion was all about, only to raise his brow at Keigo’s appearance. Turning back around he gave a simple gesture for everyone to get out of the way and looks over his shoulder at me, “Saku, I suggest putting your armor back on.” Quickly I run to my armor and smile as a young girl comes over to help, she came dressed in black leather pants and a green smock. 

“Thank you….” I did not know her name, but nevertheless she smiles as she grabs a bit of leather and chain-mail and helps me into it. Her fingers were nimble and quick as she went to work put the armor on me. “I’m Tsuyu Asui, just call me Tsu.” She was on the thin side but did not have issues hoisting up any piece of armor. I did remember her quirk in my world and simply smile to myself. “Thank you, Tsu.” 

We quickly situate my armor and I shake my arms and jump on my feet a bit as everything settles, as well as move my head from side to side. Tsu hands me my helmet and I nod as I hand it back, “I don’t think I’ll need it for this, thank you though.” She nods and holds it close to her chest and steps off to the side. I look across the grounds at Hawks who was just relaxing against a wooden post. _’I know he is usually always super chill but damn!’_ I think as I walk more into the large area, not exactly sure what he had in mind. But if he was anything like she used to see in her own world, she had an idea. Grinning in response to his laid-back smirk, maybe this was the real challenge that would help bridge the two of them together? 

Suddenly I spot two red feathers coming at me at lightning speed, instinctively I will some feathers to meet his and I smirk as two purple feathers cut his feathers off and his float almost to the ground before they dashed back to rest back in their place. I cannot help the chuckle as I look at his face, shocked that I was able to think fast enough and parry his moves. “Well then, that wasn’t what I expected.” He states as he starts sauntering towards me his frame loose, but his moves intentional and precise, his golden eyes trained on me. Swallowing around my nerves, I got myself into a low stance and held my hands out, prepared to draw out more of my feathers to cut him to the quick if he tried something similar. Not one to disappoint, Hawks only gave the barest of smirks before releasing a slew of feathers that come torpedoing at me. 

Extending my wings, I decide to answer in kind, however, just as I release my first few feather, I then notice him holding a few feathers and with a flick of his wrist, he began to redirect some of the feather from a different angle and direction, some came from I could assume would have been a blind spot, the ground, and from above. An overwhelming assault to force me to either defend or run. Without a conscious thought, as though the realization of these feather blades coming at me, came a serene sort of battle calm. In the split moments of my realization, my wings immediately began to surround me, and the feathers that were on the fringes began to act as a shield, intercepting the incoming red feather blades with ease and deflecting them into the ground. Some were even hit at an angle that they had to be flung off into nearby crates, tree stumps, and even pieces of steel armor that were left on the ground, now crumpled by the force of the redirected feathers. 

As I relax just a little a bit I feel something swipe my feet out from under me and barely have time to jump as my wings unfurl and send a blast of wind towards Hawks; sending him a few yards back. Not to be deterred, Hawks plants his feet into the ground and treats the gale as though it were just another breeze in the sail of his ship, leading him to victory and conquest. Taking the opportunity to readjust himself, all I could see was how his eyes began to light up as the heat of battle began to rage on! “Not pulling any punches, are you Hawks?!” I asked him as I took to the sky, looking down on one of the most dangerous men to ever take my heart and adoration at a moment’s notice. As I hovered in the sky, there was a moment, where I realized that at any moment, Hawks could gain the upper hand, whether I was on the ground or in the air. Regardless of this being about what I could or couldn’t do, Hawks could slay me in an instant. Whether in the heat of a raging battle of wits, charm, love, passion, and in the throes of ecstasy, or in the throes of death. Feeling my cheeks heat up in realization, my focus was torn between trying to take all of this seriously and assessing what sort of game Hawks would want to play next. 

Even if he was the predator in the roost, a little bird could still take down a mighty hawk. As though sensing my internal thoughts, Hawks’ sharp gaze looked up at me, waiting in anticipation, I couldn’t help it if my jaw fell. He looked up at me with a smirk, a god damn smirk! “Well baby bird, you are a knight after all.” Sensing a change in him, it was just like him to pull the Two-Face card. “Looks like I don’t have to take it easy on you.” Throwing his arms over his head, he tilted his head to the side like an inquisitive bird, eyes still trained on me as he mockingly condescended, “Or has Aizawa had you going through so much you have no energy left?” Effortlessly, he jumped into the air, and on his way, he managed to do a flip and I couldn’t help but smile. Was the fight over, and a new battle beginning? Likely, I licked my lips with a smile. 

“Now now baby bird, let’s see how you handle fighting in the crow’s nest!” Reaching to his wings and Hawks once more pulls out two feather swords and flies at me. His eyes intense and focused as he zeroed in on me, and immediately my brain drew a damn blank, like Black 3.0, the void was all encompassing as I only saw the sheen of the blades approaching, rapidly. 

Panicking in the realization that he wasn’t planning on just throwing his feathers at me this time, I wildly flapped my wings. “SHIT!” Closing one of my wings in order to dodge to the left, I barely got away. Snapping my wing open once more, although the wind underneath caused a temporary pain, I managed to snap around to the face of Hawks, who was still there, a focused light in his eyes, and a charismatic smile on his lips. Reaching out for my wings to try to pull a weapon out for myself, I could feel myself stalling as Hawks began to ready himself once more, _‘I don’t have swords **damn** it!’ _ Coming in once more, I tucked one of my wing’s to barrel roll out of the way and on the way managed to clip one of his wings, causing the air current to change and making him catch himself in midair. “I can at least hold my own.” I bit my lower lip and smirked as I just watched him for a minute. He was taking his time, not unlike a cat with prey, even though I doubt he’d ever dealt with those feral creatures. Regardless, it meant that if I could hold my own on the ground and in the air, he wouldn’t have any reason to actually hold back, which meant I better be prepared, for when he actually decided to take this fight seriously.

It was like a game of one upping on the apex avian predator scale, but both fighters were deadly, and slightly uncoordinated. Although I felt like I was even to Hawks, there was a feeling in the pit of my stomach that he was holding back, waiting for her to trip up. In a game of one upping each other as opponents, it was going to become necessary for one of us to declare themselves the albatross of the battlefield, and right now, I was starting to feel like a pigeon. Although we were both trading kicks, punches and wrestling the occasional arm while trying to lock each other in a headlock. Nothing that was too particularly dangerous in the grand scheme of the fight, but enough to knock the wind out of my sails. This was the longest amount of time that I had managed to stay airborne, and it was starting to show, one wrong hit and it would be a dangerous fall to the ground if I wasn’t careful. 

It continued like that, when one of us has the upper hand, the other somehow always counters but that wasn’t it, was it? We were not fighting to fight; rather, there had been some sort of transition in the middle, between fighting to declare dominance, to a battle of wits to see who could be caught unawares, to eventually we were fighting more for fun than anything. I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face, even as he began to pull a primary feather out and readied it as his sword. 

Instinctively I move my hands back into my wings, feeling around for a few seconds and to my surprise two feathers budged, more than the others had previously. Without a thought, I began to pull them out in earnest and the shocked look on my face must have made him hesitate. As though a rush of adrenaline was being pumped through my veins, I no longer felt the previous strain that had been on my body. Where my wings had begun to feel like lead that was dragging me to the ground, as I looked in my hands two long feather daggers, about twelve inches for the blade and then a bit more to hold were suddenly in my hands. Twirling them around in my hands, the name of the game had changed drastically as I pointed them at him. If my smile was maniacal, then I didn’t want to be wrong as I looked at him, my excitement at this point far beyond my control, “I guess I have some blades after all.” He smiles with a nod, but his eyes got softer, but why? That damn fluttering in my stomach happened again and I sigh, I knew why…but I was not about to lose this sparring match without a fight or…do I need to fight at all? 

We fly in a wide circle as we both gauge each other up, and as though sharing the same mind, we both move towards one another; daggers meeting sword. Smiling sweetly at Hawks, I dared to lean over the gap that was created between my daggers to his sword, his face directly in front of my own. As he widened his eyes in surprise at the action, I moved my body closer to his, at most a few inches between our bodies, our breaths warring in place of our bodies. “Are we going to keep trading blows, or are we going to finish this up hot stuff, I’m starting to get hungry.” I tested the waters by gently pushing against his blade, that he gently moved out of the way, my daggers resting against his chest, the points non-coincidentally pointing at his heart, that through the feathers, was beating just as hard as my own. Taking on the challenge, Hawks leaned in next to my ear, his hair tickling my skin as it brushed against me, a tingling sensation setting my body alight. 

“Oh sweetheart,” His voice was deep and husky in my ear, and it would be a damn lie if I said my body didn’t warm up to the occasion at the sound of his voice in my ear. A pitiful sound escaped me at the teasing tone he insinuated, and by the gods that had put me in this universe, did I want more. “I can go all day and then,” emphasized the word to where I had to question if he’d said something lewd, “and then go for chicken.” Nibbling my ear, the squeak that escaped me was the green light that we both been looking for as he leaned in closer, those inches narrowing down to millimetres as the heat of his body began to wash over me in indescribable waves. There was a cliff that we were about to pass over proverbially, and the excitement that ran through me demanded an answer, that I didn’t have to wait for. 

“Or maybe we could do something _else…_ ” The insinuation in his voice made a part of my body and mind draw a blank. With the heat of my body, I was sure I was burning a bright red, redder than a tomato, redder than any shade known to man. However, it was that very same red that drove me over the edge, and without another thought in me, I dropped my daggers that automatically returned to my wings. Grasping the sides of his face, we both turned, as though in perfect synchrony and our lips met, just as our bodies had during this fight. A struggle of one trying to top the other. It wasn’t the type of kiss shared by two young lovers, where to test the waters to move forward. Like everything else, it was hard, demanding, needful. There was no thought, and if I was thinking, then that part of me was living in a reality separate to this moment in space and time, where everything was suspended. It wasn’t magical like the movies that I had grown up on, it wasn’t the kindness of lovers meeting up after not seeing one another for years.

It was primal, it was pure. Knowing it had caught us both off guard didn’t help any. However, the part of me that wanted to know more, that wanted to see, what king of beast was Keigo Takami, feared and revered Hawks. A part of me just seemed to let go, in order to revel in the moment of hands reaching out and clasping one another. Of lips moving, messily and hard, the desire between the both of us tangible, like the force that had brought me here, and given me **fucking** wings.

I pull back and anchor myself on his chest as we fall, our wings catching the winds and gently bringing us towards the ground, gently putting my arms around his neck, I couldn’t help but to chuckle, “We need to stop meeting like this” and although his face was calm and collected, there was a hunger in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. One that I intended to fill, and then let overfill, until we were both drowning in the satiation.

“Well baby bird, you are full of surprises today” he states right before we make impact with the ground, dust flying up all around us as we slide across the ground a bit before stopping, still managing to stay on our feet, bodies close. Staying together like that, still in the heat of the moment, peels of laughter poured out of my mouth just as Hawks threw his head back in similar laughter, “Well that was fun.” Releasing my grip from his neck, I take a few steps away and turn back to look at Keigo, who’s now down on the ground on one of his knees. In his eyes, there’s that smolder still burning, even while I see his knowing smirk, but I do my best to ignore it, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear, I dust myself off from the residual dust clinging to my armor. “I’m going to go get some food.” 

As I walk away, I hear Keigo say behind me, whether or not he meant for me to hear, “Baby bird, I’ve never met anyone like you, can I see you later?” Stopping and raising a brow, I never figured he would be the one asking, but quite frankly, I never thought that I would be in a position like this. Regardless, I smile and nod, though I know he can’t see my smile, “maybe later.” I make a quick exit between a couple of buildings and then lean against one of the walls. “Did I just really do that!? Holy shit!?” I take a few deep breathes and lean my head back, “that was gutsy, really gutsy…ok food…I need food. 

Back at the training grounds, Keigo dusted himself off and spread his wings, they twinged a bit from the beating that they’d taken but other than that, they were fine. “You know Hawks, you didn’t need to do that just to get her to kiss you.” Aizawa states as he walks up, arms crossed loosely over his chest. Steeling himself in front of the older Knight, any other knight would have at least had the gall to be embarrassed at having been caught. But where was the fun in that? “Well, I didn’t but it was a fun way to get her too.” 

Aizawa just looked at him for a moment, as normal, his features mostly unreadable, and just as he had appeared, Aizawa turned around and moved towards the training grounds exit, “If you were not Sir Hawks, I would slap you. But I have better things to do, like figuring out where the hell Shoto got lost too.” He waves at the knight and leaves the compound. 

Standing there, Hawks runs a hand through his hair _‘why am I the one everyone always wants to smack?’ he thinks as he looks around, no one else was around anymore, the show was over and everyone had gone their own ways. “Well…guess I’ll go get some chicken then.” He walks off the compound in search of food._

__

__

**Few hours later**

I am walking through the city heading towards the main gates, like I did the few days before. Checking in with Liza once again to see if Shoto or Desca had shown up yet; be it together or separate. I smile as Liza is talking to yet another person and making notes, I lean against her table till’ she is finished. As she turns, I give a little wave “Hey Liza, good day today?” The older woman smiles, “Indeed, and how was your day?” She asks me knowingly. Word here spread like wildfire when anything happened, if the church mouse died at 8:00, the world would know by 8:01. “You already know how my day went, but it was decent. Any word yet?” I ask as she sits down, and I move to stand. 

“No dear, no word yet. Shoto has not even sent a message, he is still out there looking for your friend, he won’t stop till’ he finds her.” Liza puts some papers away, “he won’t stop till’ he does. Tell me, this Desca, what is she like?” I look at her, normally she did not ask about her, but at this point, what would it hurt to tell someone else? “Sh- she’s my best friend…in our…hometown, we do so much together, she’s practically my sister.” I rub the side of my neck, digging a nail into my skin just a bit before dragging my fingertips down and then off my neck, leaving a small red mark. “I worry about her, even though I know that she can handle herself but…” _’this is a different world…fuck I hope she’s okay!’_ My mind wanders but Liza snaps me out of it, “Saku! There is some trouble at the south gate, why don’t you head over and see what’s up. Some other knights will be there as well.” Liza pushes me to move rather urgently. 

I jump into the air and fly towards the south gate, shaking the fog from my head and pushing the memories to the back of my mind, so that I could focus on the task at hand. As I get closer my eyes narrow, Hawks was fighting with what looked like thugs while a few other knight’s do the same but there was someone amidst it all, tall, black hair with long flowing black clothing… _’no that can’t be…_ my eyes widen as the man looks up directly at me, face half burned and stitched together, _‘I am **so** screwed…’_ I dive down and flip, landing about ten yards away from him, from Dabi. 

He does not move, he just looks at me, when I try to take a step, he cocks his head to the side “I wondered when I would see you, Saku.” His voice was low but how did he know who I was, no one knew who I was until I was introduced. “How do you know my name?” I ask as my wings slightly wrapping around me, one hand moving behind my back. “Oh, don’t be like that, all of this,” he flourished his hand around to indicate the chaos between the thugs and the Knights, “this was all to get your attention, little bird. I know where you came from, and I saw you coming here.” He moves so casually amidst the battle, not really caring about the thugs, just walking towards me. 

I draw a dagger and wait, “If you know where I came from, then you know how I can get back!” I pull the dagger from behind me and throw it at him, but all he does is catch it between his fingers. _‘mother fucker!’_ With a droll stare, he snapped his fingers, and I watched in horror as the feather ignited in his grasp. My mind was both pissed off and impressed, it was Dabi after all…and fuck it all, he was still pretty damn hot, even in his medieval garb, not unlike a rogue mage of some sort. “I may know a way for you and your friend to get back…it will cost both of you something in order to do it…” Before Dabi could continue, Hawks flew in and cut us both off. Keeping himself between Dabi and me, Hawks’ blades were in his hand, as well as readied in the air dividing us. 

“You and I have unfinished business, sorcerer!” Hawks was tense, every muscle was tense as he faced off with Dabi. _‘fuck, that is hot…wait no this is not the time Saku!’_ I shake my head and step to the side, Dabi knew or possibly knew how we could get back. “Hawks…wait! He has to know something about Desca!” Turning to me slowly, Hawks shook his head before turning back to Dabi, the look in his eyes, that of a contained rage. Looking around I see the knights wrangling up the thugs, almost everyone was done except the three of us. Some were watching, knights versus a villain and seeing what would happen. 

“Oh come now Hawks, that was quite rude of you. I was speaking to _Saku_ , not you. You’re yesterday’s news, _bird brain_ ,” Dabi gives a crazed smile, his charred cheeks pulled back and his eyes narrowed like a cat about to pounce, “ _very_ unbecoming of the number one knight, wouldn’t you say, Saku?” He does not move forward but does not back down either. With his hands at his side, one wouldn’t think Dabi dangerous, until he pounced and burned you down to ash. Looking towards Hawks I notice that his jaw is set but he does not move either, their standoff as of yet undetermined. So I move forward, one dagger in my hand, and another coming from my wing to replace the charred one.

“You wanted to talk to me, so talk, Dabi.” I cross my arms and try not to give him a once over. _‘the two guys I would actually **do** …omg Saku **shut up**!’_ I blink as I look at Dabi, and how he began sauntering over, but stops as Hawks puts a hand on my shoulder, I turn to him. “He’s just going to lie to you, he’s _never_ good on his word.” 

There was a pain in his voice, that I hadn’t noticed before.

Granted, villains usually lie but they can also use the truth as well and I had a feeling he was not lying, at this point, there would be nothing to gain from it. “I am more than capable of handling myself Keigo.” I state and struck the nerve I wanted as he drops his hand from my shoulder and steps back, and though his pride was wounded, I knew he would still stay near. “Careful little bird, I’m here if you need me.” I nod and turn back towards the sorcerer, “But never let this guy get to you. All he’s good for is a shitty riddle.” 

Ignoring Keigo’s side comment, I face towards Dabi, giving him my full attention, “How have you seen me coming here and how do we get back?” I try to keep it vague since no one actually knows I’m from the future, _‘Is that what it would be called, the future? Or is this something entirely different?’_ I ask myself as Dabi gives that smile again and seriously at this moment, wish that neither of them was in my vicinity. Two hot guys and it is driving me nuts, _physically and psychologically!_

“I saw you in a vision, you and your friend… **Desca**. Where is she by the way, haven’t found her yet?” He gives a nonchalant wave of his hand and I remember he does not make many moves without thinking them through, so I try to stay prepared. “If you touch her…” I growl out, _‘I may have the hots for him, but so help me if he harms her…’_ I think as I ball my fists around my daggers, my knuckles white and my body going tense. 

Dabi stops his movements, “oh I see, you know somewhat of me, well I just wanted to introduce myself to the new knight, but it looks like that won’t be necessary.” He dramatically bows and then he just raises his head, “Have no fears, _Saku_ , we will meet again but until then, good luck!” He gave a lazy salute, his voice more chipper than the situation called for, “You’ll need it!” Without warning he thrusts his hand out and blue flames erupted from between his fingertips, sending a wall of fire towards us. Both Keigo and I jump out of the way quickly and hit the ground hard with a grunt. As we looked to where Dabi was, our eyes widened; he was gone. “That son of a bi…” I trail off and huff, “fucking idiot.” 

“Are you alright, Saku?” Keigo asks as he smothers some of the flames, I get up and adjust a few arm pieces. “I’m fine, just wish I knew more right now and where my best friend is, that is my priority right now.” I sigh and rub my temples; nothing can be easy it seems. Then a few seconds later I felt arms wrap around me, looking up I give a sad smile as I see golden pools looking at me. “I believe you can do whatever you set your mind to, baby bird. But you definitely don’t shy away from danger, do you?” 

I rest my head on his armored chest, one arm wrapping around his waist and smile a bit more when I feel him kiss my head. But before I can even respond I hear footsteps approaching. “Oh gees, I finally find you and you’re hugging Hawks the Hunk!?” Desca walks up with Shoto beside her, grinning and giving a little wave. Instantly I was out of Hawks’ arms and running for my best friend. 

In turn she sprints towards me and we collide in a strong hug, “I was so worried about you!” I say into her shoulder, squeezing tighter. 

“Oh sure,” she returned, but nevertheless she pulled me close, “so worried you were hugging fly boy over there!” Pulling back and seeing the mirth in her eyes, I couldn’t help but laugh before looking at her. She apparently had donned a more roguish attire, black/brown pants with various leather belts everywhere. Her damn ukulele strapped to her back and a kazoo in her belt, in the same place that a dagger would normally rest. It suited her perfectly! She had a hood that was hanging on her back and daggers strategically placed, she looked good and oh those knee-high leather boots just made the outfit absolutely work! 

“Bro, you look good” I smile and then I look to Shoto, “took ya long enough.” I state with a smile as I keep an arm around Desca’s shoulders. “Actually, she found me after dealing with some thieves on her own. I was on her trail but when a bard can sneak up behind you, it’s startling.” Shoto replies with a shrug, but it was evident he was happy for the reunion. “Thank you, for looking for her.” I state and he nods before dismissing himself. I turn back to Desca, “you fought some thieves?” 

Desca gives a nervous smile, “I did…they wanted my ukulele and my kazoo, I couldn’t let them take them!” she laughs at how she sounds and then she finally looks at me. “Whoa, Saku you have wings!!!!” She turns me around, so I unfurl them for her and laugh as she traces the feathers, “that is pretty cool!” I turn back around and the smile on Desca’s face just made me smile more, “Come on let’s go and catch up cause I wanna hear all about how you fought some thieves!” 

Both girls walk back into the city arm and arm, leaving a very confused Hawks behind looking around for some kind of explanation. 

Shrugging, Shoto just looks at Hawks briefly, his gaze unreadable, “Don’t ask me, the one with the kazoo held me at knifepoint when we first met, and then she tried to use me as a hostage with the thieves.” Dusting himself off for a moment, maybe the shock was finally beginning to wear off, “I don’t think I want to turn in my report for this with Sir Aizawa . . .”

“I wouldn’t either, Shoto.”

As though being summoned by some primordial ritual meant to summon the greatest evil of all, Aizawa once more appeared, his booming voice echoing through the city all the way the gate, “SHOTO!!!!”

**TBC**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks you again to my OG Editors; Exxie23 and T.Suitor. Without them I would be so lost!


	3. Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Saku and Desca are finally back together, will they figure things out? Will feelings be hidden or get in the way as they try to work on getting home? Is Dabi gone or is he coming back and is Desca flirting with someone???
> 
> Warning note. We have Trigger warnings in place for scene(s) that will contain sexual situations involving an adult (masturbation) and voyeurism. Please read at your own discretion. The trigger warnings will appear at the beginning and end. So whoever is not comfortable reading that type thing may skip it.

Back at the residential building, I’m drawing an ice-cold bath and just waiting to step in, after putting a couple small buckets of ice in the bath. I move to step in, immediately forgetting that I have wings. I could feel my breath stopping short as I accidentally stepped on a primary feather. Startled, I immediately scream and fall backwards, ending up flat on the ground with an audible, “Ugh!” 

Grunting and groaning in pain, although my feathers had cushioned the blow I otherwise would have had with the ground, landing on my wings was definitely not like landing on a feather bed. 

**. . .**

Sitting up, I decided to just scoot across the floor towards the tub, it wasn’t the traditional tubs that I had seen from my time though. This tub was cut into the floor, not unlike a jacuzzi would be, there was even a contraption along the edge of the tub to allow warm or cold water to run through the tub to the user’s preference. Aizawa had mentioned that the cold water was pulled from a nearby river, whereas the warm water was from an underground reservoir from a nearby volcanic area. Sighing at the indignity that it required, I did the butt scoot boogie so that I wouldn’t inadvertently slip on the wet stone floor again. 

Even though I have bathed a couple of times since being here, it was still weird with wings, maneuvering them, cleaning them, and generally just interacting with things in a room. If I had ever believed that cats were bad for knocking things off of counters, then wings were the epitome of a nightmare situation. If there was only one good thing, mine were waterproof, with the water rolling off of each feather like droplets of oil.

Sinking into the tub, although the tub had ice in it, it at least felt lukewarm, but the temperature was still dropping, especially as I turned on the faucet that would allow the river water to filter through the tub. Putting my wings carefully behind me on the stone floor, I managed to recline in the tub as though it were a clawfoot tub that had been made specifically for me to lounge within. Although, as I looked at my wings, it felt more like I was hiding away in my own private bathing pool. Reaching over for the assorted scented soaps and oils, grabbing a few and adding them to the water, the immediate scent of lavender and mint filled the room, calming me instantly. Leaning against the back of the tub, I couldn’t help but to release my breath as a deep sigh, and as my body begins to relax, the tension ebbing and flowing as my mind begins to wander. 

Overall, today had been extremely eventful, figuring out what I can really do, having Hawks, seeing that Dabi is in this world too, and getting back together with Desca. Reaching a tentative finger out to pop one of the bubbles that floated along the surface of the water. There were plenty of pieces coming together, but just as many that seemed to be drifting away, more questions than answers. As far as I could tell, there didn’t appear to be anyone the wiser, yet. 

Hawks would always be an option, he surely must know something that was going on with regards to the villain organizations in the region and thief outposts. Holding one of my wings out across the water, I gently let the edge of the feathers dance across the water, and watched how the rings interacted with one another, as my mind began to wander back to my two current enigmas . . . 

Thinking about the calm and cool Hawks alongside fiery and mysterious Dabi, they were practically polar opposites in my world. Both men of mystery with shady and traumatic pasts and uncertain alliances. A dangerous blush burned across my cheeks as my mind undressed the two men, dipping my head below the water, the chill was more prominent now, but it didn’t bother my skin, was this another aspect of my powers or wings? Some sort of resistance to the cold? Could the same be said for if the water were warmer? 

Resurfacing, it didn’t change the fact that Desca was right, the adoration I had for them as characters, was now significantly more carnal. Squeezing my legs together, even while the water was cool, there were parts of my body that were just getting warmed up . . . Dammit Saku! This isn’t the time for this! 

Nevertheless I relented and changed the water from cold to warm, and watched how the room slowly began to fill with steam. 

“Get it together Saku! You are Sakura Flor, yes, they’re hot, but Hawks is available, there’s no reason to want for more!” I said to myself, and maybe if I repeated that mantra enough, I would’ve been able to believe it, but it would be a cold day in hell before I would be able to even scratch the surface of that topic. 

“Gotta work backwards then . . . Desca said there have been others coming to this world, and that Dabi has been looking for Desca and I.” Poking a piece of ice in the water, it glided across the water, subsequently knocking into other pieces, which then played battleship with other pieces of ice, “What’re the chances that he hasn’t just been looking for us? Would he be the reason for the people in our world dying here? Or has something else been taking them out?” Groaning, I should have asked Desca before storming off, it was definitely something I would need to broach with Desca, but it would have to be tactful. When I’d seen her, I had been elated, but her eyes and the bags beneath them had been something else. She had definitely seen things since she’d been here, and likely she’d had to do some unsavory things in order to get by, things she may never be able to forget. 

“This world really is cruel, all I’ve done is figure out my powers and ogle the crushes I never thought I could meet in a million years. While Desca had to fight to make it back to me, I was stuck here, just . . . waiting.” Grabbing a bar of soap to lather myself, I couldn’t help but to let my mind drift to Hawks, surely, he would know what to say to cheer me up through all of this. 

***Sexual Trigger Warning***

I let my hands glide across my body, and imagined Hawks’ hands being the ones that were touching me, would they be calloused and rough from all of his combat experience? Soft and nimble, unlike the rest of his body. If I let go, I could even pretend that I wasn’t in a tub, but rather flying on different wind currents, the cool air running through my hair and wings, and giving me the greatest feelings of being free! Even as I reclined, the warm water that cut through the cold made goosebumps crawl up my skin like wildfire. 

Opening my eyes, I couldn’t help but to imagine Hawks, from the crown of his head, the way his disheveled hair is always windblown, down to the whiskers that had tickled my skin when we’d . . . when we’d kissed! I felt my back arch in reflex to the memory that caused my eyes to snap open, and my cheeks to burn brightly. 

If they’d been on a wolf, they would have been the kind of gold that would have been cold and calculating, but on my Hawks, the only thing that was cold, was the ache he created in my body. Those eyes were the kind that melted her in her spot on the tub. As though a reflex to his presence, I felt my legs open in invitation as a hand found a way down to where I felt the most needful and sensitive. A gluttonous moan filled the room, as I saw how Hawks’ lips upturned in that smile that always made me want to tease him, as much as he seemed to enjoy teasing me. 

But where their last interaction had already proven they both had patience, but he would bend and break under force, especially when he actually wanted to go forward. Next time, next time I will make him beg. Staring into those golden depths, it was so easy to become lost in them, until they seemed to spark in excitement, and my breath hitched audibly as fingers danced and teased, pushing me closer to the edge. 

“Damn you, Desca.” I groaned, “De verdad, porque no los dos? (Really, why not both?)” 

“Nothing says you can’t, baby bird.” A mocking voice came from the doorway of the bathroom, snapping my head at the sound, “But remember, those in love, will always be cursed.” 

“Well, well, don’t you have a silver tongue, alborotador (troublemaker)?” Surely this was a sign from my subconscious to self-indulge, after all this would be the only time, I could truly have both. “Tell me Dabi,” I stretched languidly, a hand still teasing as one moved to a breast, “what can I possibly offer you?” I groaned as I tweaked and twisted a nipple. 

Those pale eyes gleefully looked between Hawks and I, his expression unreadable, even while his fingers seemed to dance in the air in front of me in a circular motion, was it some sort of nervous tic? I’d never seen the motion before, but the stories had never covered Dabi when he wasn’t in the limelight of some sort, maybe I could even pretend he was an onion, with layers, all waiting to be divulged. 

I couldn’t help but to lick my lips, even while Dabi was sticking his tongue out playfully, as though to check if it had actually turned to silver. A strange expression coming over Dabi’s normally nonchalant face, his eyes still going between Hawks and I. It was almost as if he were afraid to break the moment, that desperately could have used his action, rather than his eyes, but I could see the part of him that was significantly interested. 

“If you’re going to stare, then I might as well give you something to look at, alborotador,” throwing my head back, there was suddenly new sensations, hands that didn’t feel like my own covered the entirety of one breast as another replaced my other preoccupied hand, throwing my hands out, the chest in front of me felt solid, “Hawks?!” 

Sure as sin in a church, he was now in the tub with me, his eyes affixed to my own, but the smile that curled his lips was one I had never seen on Hawks’ face before, but if I didn’t know better . . . My back arched once more as Hawks’ lips descended on my breast and my hands became entangled in his hair, my body feeling alien to me as it moved on its own accord! 

“Funny, I was about to say the same to you,” Dabi’s chuckle now came from my shoulder, turning to look in confusion, there was a soft look on his face, but a hunger in his turquoise eyes. Turning my head away, I could practically feel the heat of his body near the tub, as though he were truly right next to me. But surely, it was just the steam getting to me, was I overheating? 

As much as I wanted to deny it, the sensations overtaking my body certainly felt real! As I pulled Keigo closer, my hands touched my bare skin, but the sensations continued to burn across and through my body, like something was burning through me, melting me from the inside out in the worst way. “Looks like you’re occupied well enough.” A curious knowing grin spread across his face, “Are you all right, knight?” 

“Never better!” I squeaked, even while my breath kept coming out in quickening gasps, “Why?!” 

“You seem to be struggling, let me, lend a hand.” Feeling my head being tilted back, I found myself looking up into those turquoise eyes, as lips collided against my own. It was a searing kiss that made the fire beneath suddenly set my skin aflame. “Now now, don’t give up so quickly, Saku.” His chuckle reverberated through my skull, and it felt like the sound was echoing around the room as well as my mind. Reaching out for Dabi, everything felt delayed, as though the world around me was being filtered through a haze. “Don’t forget me too quickly now, cariño (sweetie/darling), I’ve left you with a very special gift.” 

“Pinche madre (Motherfucker).” I managed to gasp out as the fire inside of my body seemed to calm itself into a resounding hunger. However, as I turned to face him, the room was empty. Reaching for the faucet to turn the water off, everything inside of me felt boneless and weak. “What the hell just happened?” I looked around the room one more time, blinking to make sure I was the only one there. 

***Trigger Warning End***

***In the North part of the Dark Forest***

A dark figure slowly starts to move within a witch’s circle, eyes opening slowly as he smiles to himself, “that was quite entertaining.” He starts to stretch, careful not to rip his staples, he didn’t need to get news one again just yet. He stands and turns side to side, loosening his back. Astral projection can take a lot of energy and makes his actual body stiff. If the weather changes too quickly, he’s always stuck in bed groaning like an old ninny, while everyone else goes on as though everything is hunky-dory. 

Breaking the circle, Dabi moved about the room putting candles away and various sands. “Now all I need to do is let my magic take hold,” Leaning backwards until he could hear his back pop, he then straightened back up and stretched his arms, “generate a few opportunities and coincidental encounters, and start to create the ouroboros seal, then she will willingly come with me.” He sighs as he closes a cabinet and locks it, making certain to put the key into his pocket, lest anyone undesirable be tempted to mess with anything inside. 

Looming in the doorway, nearly unbeknownst to Dabi, a figure stood shadowed from the few remaining lights that were in his chambers. “Did you get what you needed?” The figure asks with a crazed smile, initially the only thing that could be seen in the darkness that seemed to permeate around the figure’s very presence. Pushing away from the doorframe, the shadowed figure entered the room, confident and self-assured. 

Nodding, Dabi returns with a deranged smile of his own, matching that of his mentor’s. Grasping what was left of the scorched feather that he’d pilfered from his earlier fight against Saku, Dabi spun it around a few times between his thumb and forefinger, his magic intertwining with the little minx he’d just been with. “It may be some time for it to work but she will willingly come with me when the time comes.” He was confident that Saku would go with him when he asked, everything hinged on a little push in order to get the ball rolling, and his magic would ensure the rest. 

“What about her friend? She has been a thorn in your side for some time now, Dabi.” The figure reached out, their hand grasping onto a nearby countertop, “Will she try and hinder our plans with this?” With that, the figure fully began stepping into the light. 

“She won’t become an issue Stain, if you deal with her when the time comes.” Dabi lazily raised his brow, his eyes trained on the larger man, “You can handle a little girl with a kazoo and ukulele, right?”

“The damn bitch knows how to use those to her advantage,” Stain growled lowly, his eyes narrowed in rage, “and you should know what she is capable of, she’s pissed you off more than once.” Bristling at his words, Dabi’s smile quickly descended into a scowl, Stain knowing that he’d hit a nerve.

Desca Thrush had been a large thorn in Dabi’s side for the last month or so. Even if she didn’t realize it, she’d been thwarting their plans and just being an all around nuisance. “That bitch will learn her place soon enough, by our hands.” Making a fist with his right hand, Dabi felt his nails digging into his palm, just enough to make him ease up, but not enough to draw blood, “Then we’ll see how things go for the rest of those fucking knights that forced most of us to flee.” A fire burned in Dabi’s eyes over what the knights had done to most of the ‘magic’ users. 

Stain cracked his neck, “Do you think the mark will keep long enough? We need the girl to be complacent and willing to join us, Dabi.” He wasn’t sure about all this magic crap but Dabi was the best around for this type thing. Though he would never say it out loud to the brat in front of him, Stain couldn’t shake this nervous feeling that had been creeping through his bones over the last month, something ominous. “Nothing lasts forever, Dabi. If this brat is even half as competent as her friend,” Stain snarled, “then we’ll be left floundering, and another opportunity won’t reveal itself so easily next time.”

Walking to the doorway, Dabi ground his teeth, and once more found himself clenching his hands again, this time breaking skin, a few droplets of blood landing on the stone floor. “She will be mine, all you need to worry about right now is finding our elusive little handsy friend.” His turquoise eyes narrowed in distaste, “I’d rather not be in need of him, but we are running out of viable options. Find Shigaraki, and Dabi?” 

“Yes, Lord Stain?” Dabi sighed, semi-sarcastically, the man’s ego something else to deal with entirely. 

“Don’t fuck this up, use that charming personality of yours, and make some friends out of our to-be allies.” Dabi watched as Stain nodded, dismissing him from his own chambers, before he left the room to get something to eat; astral projecting really can make a man ravenous, for multiple things. Discreetly, Dabi made sure to tuck away his still prominent problem. 

***Next Morning***

Morning came quickly as I dragged myself out of bed,noticing the bed next to me was already vacant. _‘That’s not like Desca to be up early…’_ Getting up, I moved to the water basin and washed my face, as well as rinsing my mouth out, sadly toothpaste didn’t seem to exist just yet, at some point I’ll have to find some baking soda to make up the difference. But until then, it was a matter of do as the Romans do. Afterwards, I began to get dressed, grabbing all my clothing and armor. It only takes me twenty minutes till I am walking outside and squinting at the sun coming up. Looking down the path to the left and yet I found myself turning towards a sound that seemed to be coming from the right, and thus I started heading to the training arena. Where Desca 2.0 would likely be waiting with her eerie double, Desca 1.0. 

As I get closer, I can hear two people moving at a fast pace, but it was hard to discern if they were running or jogging. Just as I was about to approach the threshold of the area, I stopped, the sound of something being strummed catching my ear. _’No, that can’t be!?’_ Speedwalking to the side of the arena that the sound was coming from, I found myself coming to a stop at the corner of a building and lean on it as I see Desca playing her _fucking_ ukelele. But something was very different in how she was playing and her eyes were trained on her opponent. “Isn’t that one of the trainees?” I muttered under my breath to myself. 

Desca was moving quickly but expertly playing her instrument, but I wasn’t prepared for what she did next. She began to sing! But she was being directional, this wasn’t one of the songs that she sang to entertain herself, or for their shared CMVs. I looked at her opponent and noticed the girl was staggering around, her footing unsteady. She tried to charge Desca but for some reason she kept getting staggered, as though a force was weighing down on her body, when without warning the girl fell to the ground sobbing uncontrollably. Immediately, Desca stopped playing and singing but didn't run to the girl who was on her knees in front of my best friend. Her posture was distant and defiant, and although her ukelele wasn’t prepared in her hands, it wouldn’t take much for Desca to flip it back up into a ready position and begin playing once more. 

“Interesting, isn’t it?” a voice says to my right, jumping slightly at the sound, I turned to see Aizawa standing next to me, his expression appraising and inquisitive. “She has so much control over her ability, but recognizes the weaknesses that inherently exist in having her type of ability.” 

“How did she do that?” I asked, looking back at a few people helping the girl to stand while Desca tucks the ukelele away and a hand moves to rest on her belt and kazoo. Aizawa crosses his arms, although he gives a brief flourish towards Desca. 

“She has a gift called pathokinesis. She can manipulate allies and enemies’ emotions. She can even incapacitate them, if a situation would ever call for it. She’s been honing her skills for a while and can pinpoint a person's emotions and magnify or lesson them. An incredibly useful ability for an individual of her class and skill set.” 

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, and yet I just saw it happen. _‘My best friend is a mother fucking badass!’_ I think as I step out of the shadows of the building, stepping away from Aizawa, “Will the girl she fought be alright?” She seemed to be able to stand on her own but tears were still streaming down her face. Nodding, Aizawa pushed himself away from the wall with a small hum, “She’ll be fine, she volunteered for this training exercise, so Desca could get some practice in.” He begins to walk towards them, so I walk with him, “She knew what she was getting into when she chose to practice with another Knight. To expect anything less is to expect death from an enemies’ weapon.” 

“It’s not permanent?” Surely, an ability that manipulates another person’s emotions would have some sort of permanency or extended side effects? 

“No, it fades over time, the closer you are the longer it will last.” He stops at the edge of the arena and I do the same. Now Desca sees we are there and she gives a weak smile, her eyes seeming distant. 

“Morning!” She calls to us and begins to walk towards us. Just as Desca walks past her opponent, the other girl flinches and recoils away from Desca as though the emotions she’d been assaulted by had become heightened once more. 

I can’t help but smile, “Morning, you rock star!” I grin when she ducks her head but it disappears when she lifts her head. She looked worn and tired, did she not sleep well last night? Or was it the first time she’d actually been able to sleep for a while? 

I move to her side and rest a hand on her shoulder, instantly she slumps against me for support, “Desca...are you alright?” I ask as I move some hair from her face, being this close again I notice her hand gripping the kazoo rather tightly and her belt. “Desca baby…” I take a gauntlet off and place my hand over hers, after a few minutes her hand relaxes. She shakes her head and looks at me. 

“I’m sorry, even in practice I don’t like too…” 

“I know” is all I say as I pull her close, “I didn’t know you were such a badass!” I state trying to make her feel better. 

She smiles more genuinely this time, “I didn’t know either. I can also help allies, like lesson their anxiety or take away their sadness temporarily.” I listen as she explains her power, some of the light coming back to her eyes. I hadn’t realized until then just how much she was talking until the girl she was practicing with came up sniffling.

“Hello, sorry I don’t mean to interrupt you both…” the girl states with a weak smile as she wipes the final tears from her face. I smile at her, however Desca pulls back in favor of standing slightly behind me, her hand discreetly moving down to her kazoo. It was an action that looked ingrained, rather than voluntary. 

Hoping that the girl hadn’t seen the motion, I instead smiled brightly at the girl in question, “Not at all! How are you doing?” I asked, all the while not letting go of Desca. She seemed to notice, as she took a step backwards. 

“Oh I just wanted to make sure Lady Desca was alright. My name is Maya, Maya Sarto.” She offers her arm and I take it in greeting, her grip steady and firm, even while her eyes were still bloodshot from her tears. 

“Nice to meet you Maya.” 

Desca shifts her weight a bit and I move my arm around her back, “I should really be the one to thank you for helping, Maya. I really appreciate it, I admit that I have a tendency to hit others like a boulder though. It’s nothing personal!” Desca replies and gently waves her hands in embarrassment, peering over at her there was something different in the way she looks at Maya, _‘I’ve never seen her give anyone that look before’_ It was soft but strong and maybe a little mirthful as well. 

Waving her hands in return, it seemed like Maya didn’t have a care in the world at the moment, “It’s ok, Shoto had warned me beforehand. I didn’t think it would be that bad, I’ll be fine though” Maya rushes to say, cutting off Desca’s almost apology that was sure to come had Desca continued talking. 

Desca nods with that smile again, “It should fade in a few hours, I didn’t hit you with the full effect.” My eyes bugged, she had brought Maya to her knees in tears in what looked like pain and that wasn’t the full effect!? I keep my mouth shut, if anything I could always ask later and see what the full effect could do. 

As though sensing the lull in conversation Maya nods, “I’ll see you around Lady Desca, and it was nice meeting you as well, Lady Saku.” She smiles and was about to walk off when an arm shot out to stop her. 

Looking down, Desca had stopped her from leaving “Maya, please just call me Desca.” her voice was soft, like she was nervous and damn it, it is so _cute_! I smile and just watch the interaction as I felt I was just there to be a leaning post at this point. Moral support beam activated! 

Smiling at the informality, Maya had a twinge of a blush beginning to form on her cheeks as she softly and quickly responded with, “Alright...Desca, see you later.” Desca drops her hand from Maya’s arm and the girl smiles and walks away. 

Feeling that it was my time to shine, especially in the early light of dawn, I whipped around towards Desca just as I hear her sigh and lean more into me, “So...crush much?” I ask and laugh as she half-heartedly slaps my steel clad shoulder. 

“Shut up Saku,” Desca had a blush of her own, matching Maya’s almost perfectly, “just remember you have fly boy and I have ammo for days.” 

My laughter quiets down a little and I smile “Oh hunny, we have ammo for days on each other, bring it on!” We both laugh as we slowly move out of the arena to a bench, I help her sit and then sit beside her. Suddenly the guilt from earlier washes over me and I take one of her hands and play with her fingers, “Desca…” 

Desca bumps her shoulder into mine and I look up at her and there it was, complete understanding and just waiting for me to continue, her expression open and urging me on. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner, I feel bad that you have been here so long and I get here and I’m lounging and just chilling here getting my ass beat.” I state, still playing with her fingers. “You have been through so much and I don’t know much of it yet but I wish I could have been here for you.” I trail off and sigh, my chest feeling tight, whether from unshed tears, or some type or remaining guilt weighing on me. 

The hand I was playing with flips and our fingers intertwine and she squeezes “You didn’t know, plus Aizawa said you have been training to figure out your powers, so you weren’t that lazy.” She breathed deeply, as though she was coming to the same reality that I had last night, “It just so happened I arrived first, and it’s _not_ your fault. Who knows why we arrived when we did, how we did, and especially _why_ we did.” Desca scoots closer and forces my chin up with her other hand, “we found each other, isn’t that what matters?” 

I nod and rest my forehead to hers, “what would we do without each other huh?” I ask with a small chuckle and Desca snickers, bumping into my shoulder. 

“You would probably just fuck Hawks...and maybe Dabi.” She outright laughs as I hit her stomach at that jab, my cheeks blushing horribly at the experience I had had last night. 

“Oy, what about you...you were looking at Maya there for a minute!” I grin as Desca ducks her head for a second, “Someone has a sweet spot for their most recent opponent, what does that say about you, missy?” 

Burning brightly, Desca pushed against me slightly and waved her hands indignantly in the air, “I didn’t know you noticed that.” I make a motion with my finger for her to look at me, when she does I can’t help but smile as we are both relaxing more again. 

“I’m your best friend, of course I am gonna notice!” Moral support post, mission complete, I couldn’t help but smile to myself as Desca seemed to be coming out of her shell a little more each moment they were together. 

Desca nods “Alright yeah, you’re right. But at least I only like one person! But seriously, fly boy and _the_ Dabi, that’s crazy!” She gets quiet for a minute, before taking a breath “you know we need to hunt him down right?” I nod, at this point it would be inevitable, like most things in life. If it was going wrong, it was time to look at, or for Dabi.

“I know, he knows something and I want to find out what it is. He has answers and we need them.” I set my jaw and I curl fingers inward on my left hand making a fist, “whatever is going on, we need to stop it.” 

“And we will,” Desca grasps my hand reassuringly, “we’ll hunt him down and figure things out, but we have to go in prepared. Aizawa is putting a team together...you, Hawks, Maya, Shoto and myself.” Desca states and leans back on the bench, “we’ll get to the bottom of this, but first!” She jumps up suddenly, seems she has regained strength and energy, I look up at her waiting with bated breath. “BREAKFAST!” I laugh as she drags me up on my feet and begins to pull me towards what we would consider a mess hall. 

**TBC**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to our Editor Exxie23 and thank you to D_Schneider for helping and hopping onboard this crazy train!


	4. Planning: Chapter 4 Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: The team Aizawa puts together the team to hunt down dabi. Saku and Hawk get closer but Dabi has other plans as he tries to steal from them. Desca and Maya get closer while Hawks and Desca argue and push each other's buttons. Shoto minds his own business until he is needed.

“You had me worried, kiddo,” Dabi grunted from his spot on the couch as he peered into the doorway where Toga was readjusting her armor distractedly. “I figured the Knights had you in one of their interrogation rooms. Pulling off those lovely nails of yours,” Flipping through his novel, when Toga didn’t respond, Dabi folded the corner of his current page and set the book aside, “pull up a seat.” Gesturing to one of the chairs nearby, Toga finally walked in, her normally cheerful demeanor subdued, almost somber.

As she sat down, Toga seemed to curl into herself, her eyes still red, likely from a recent bout of crying. “Stain said that we’re going to be attacking the Knights’ Compound?” Hoarsely she wrapped her arms around her legs, her normally maintained nails now chipped, and one was even bleeding.

“If your info is right, they’ll be coming for us, in the next few days most likely. It’ll save us the trip, if they do decide to come to us.” Swinging his legs off the side of the couch, Dabi moved to a sitting position so that he could look easily towards Toga and offer support if she really needed it. Something was definitely eating at her though, “You didn’t go and catch feelings now, did you?” It was the one rule they’d all been relegated to following, being a villain didn’t come with an easy life, much less a long one at that.

“No,” Toga swiped once more at her eyes, “I thought I had made an ally for our cause, but I was wrong. They were just like the rest of those Knights, pushing those that don’t conform to their standards out.” Toga herself had been run off when she’d killed a young squire when her quirk had revealed its true nature. Poor bastard hadn’t stood a chance against her brand of love.

“Most people suck, trust me, you probably weren’t missing out on much.” Resting his hand on his fist, with a soft smile, Dabi knew exactly what would cheer up the youngest member of the League. Snapping his fingers and making a swiping motion in the air, a few streaks of fire rippled through the air. From the room behind him, Dabi could hear less than see his spyglass rolling from its prior perch in his astral projection circle, to the room that he was in.

As it rolled up to him, Dabi picked up off of the ground, and at his touch, the surface beneath came alive, focusing his thoughts on the Knights’ Compound, Dabi passed the orb over to Toga. Eyeing it wearily, she nevertheless grabbed the proffered item, and with that, the surface cleared to reveal some sort of powwow between a small group of Knights. 

“My lovely Maya . . . we can still be together!” Toga immediately brightened, her fanged maw curling devilishly, “I just have to help you see Stain’s Truth!” Spinning towards him, Toga’s gaze, no longer hinged on her sadness and anger, was now rife with her desire to consume and obtain the things that drew her fancy, namely a Knight with dark hair and assorted piercings. “Dabi! This is my lovely friend, Maya, we met when I was on that mission a few weeks ago!” Blushing at the memory, Dabi wanted to feel happy for the girl, who at this point seemed absolutely smitten, which could only lead to the next _logical_ step. 

“I’m guessing you have her blood?” 

Hoisting the orb above her head, Toga snapped out of the chair and euphorically danced in a small circle. Dabi almost wanted to warn her about the orb, but with the way she kept staring adoringly at the image reflected on the surface, he knew there was no point. Toga may be excitable, but she wasn’t clumsy, especially when something piqued her interest. Stopping suddenly in her frenzied state, Toga’s eyes zeroed in on Dabi, her fanged smile somewhere between bliss and insidious. 

“Of course! It’s easy to get what I need when we practice together!” From the folds of her cloak, Dabi saw several vials of blood, likely from other _training_ partners. From experience, Dabi knew that even while the bottles weren’t labeled, she knew where each bottle had come from and the basis of the quirk that each person possessed, a valuable thing indeed. 

Glancing at the orb once more, Dabi moved before he realized he’d performed the action. Grasping the orb, on the surface beside Maya was the thorn that had been in his side, Desca Thrush, and beside her. A sinister smile twisted his lips as a fire began to burn in his chest, the pivotal points, together again. Saku and Desca, just the lambs he needed to make his plan succeed. 

Whatever world they came from, it didn’t matter to _him_ , but it was necessary to maintain their continued existence in this world. The others that had come before hadn’t been so lucky, whether in having a disadvantageous quirk, poor situation placement, or a run in with nature’s worst monsters. Dabi himself had had nothing to do with their demise, rather, he’d wound up a witness more than anything. The way the world would reject these foreign bodies that had unsuccessfully tried to integrate. If the ritual was performed correctly, it could be a matter of taking care of two birds with one stone, a spell to integrate the foreigners, and the downfall of their current society here. 

The longer any foreigner stayed, the more their world would try to violently reject their presence. The longest one he’d seen so far had lasted a month and a half before an avalanche had buried them alive. When he’d gone to recover the body, for _scientific_ purposes, all that had remained was a pool of blood on the ground, and the armor that they’d donned for battle, nothing else. Even Stain wasn’t aware of the anomaly that had been occurring, and at this point, Dabi felt like he was the only one that had been given the damnable vision. 

And it all centered on the survival of Desca and Saku.

At the sight of the purple haired knight, a foreign part of him seemed to come alive, not unlike the few times he’d sparred with Keigo Takami, long before he’d been called the number one knight, Hawks. The feeling, although unnamed, was _exactly_ the same, it was _infuriating_ , and the only way to end it, would be to _claim_ them, surely that would end the madness that had been assaulting his body as of late!

“Dabi!” The shriek brought his gaze back up to Toga whose face looked mildly horrified, “You have a problem!” Following her pointed gaze and finger, Dabi wished he could competently perform an invisibility spell to hide his straining problem, and himself. “I don’t want your blood when you’re like that! Fix it!!! We have Knights to jump and love to spread!” 

**** Break to the Knights’ Training Compound****

“Do not take unnecessary risks, is this understood?” Aizawa states as he looks at us, I nod in response and see the rest do the same. 

“Do we even know where to look exactly?” I ask as I shift my helmet to my other arm. I was more worried about exactly where he was not actually when we did find him. If there was anything that could be more sure than death or taxes, it was that Dabi would be prepared for them to show up. Everything leading up, would likely be playing into a plan he’d concocted or expected in advance. 

Shoto turns to us, “we know he is deep in the dark forest, likely to the north but other than that we are not sure.” Pointing out the approximate location on the map in front of all of us, he indicated a patch of land a few miles north of the compound. “He is extremely elusive and seems to know when we are nearing his lair, there’s been more than one occasion where his magic has been detected, and our scouts either came back lost, or not at all.” He shrugs and turns back to Aizawa who is his usual self with arms crossed. 

“So we head north and start searching.” I state with a slight shrug of the shoulders, “It’s definitely better than nothing.” Something was bothering me, but I couldn’t put my finger on the problem. My experience with anyone from the League of Villains that had existed in my world, hadn’t translated so well here. Toga was a Knight in training here and had been at the Musutafa Knight’s Compound for the last year or so, she’d even been the one to recruit Maya. She’d been around the night I’d brought Desca to the compound. 

“Yes, the search will be to the North to the location last indicated by our scouts, but you will all be training as well. As you search you will spar with one another, and make usage of the environment, you won’t be the only thing out in the woods.” Indicating a small break in the woods, it looked like a patch of land that had been dedicated to leaving squires to fend for themselves for a week, and to scout resources as part of their training regime. “Once you make camp, you’ll break off into pairs and use your quirks, train hard and hone them even more than what you have now.” Aizawa sighs and looks at Maya, “We do have some bad news however, Toga has gone missing and no one has seen her since a few days ago. She was supposed to report two days ago for a mission to Kohera but failed to report to Lady Midnight for her mission report. We suspect foul play, nothing in her residence suggests that she packed to go anywhere.” 

I looked over to Maya and her eyes were beginning to glass over with tears before anyone else could go to her Desca was at her side humming and pulling her into a side hug. Knowing exactly what Desca was doing, I looked back at the older knight. “We’ll keep an eye out for her as well, hopefully we can bring her back.” Looking over at Maya, she held my gaze as we both nodded in mutual agreement before I glanced at Desca who also gave a determined nod, her jaw set in a hard line. 

Aizawa claps his hands together, “Then it’s settled, you will leave at midday. Make sure to gather all the supplies you need before you go.” He gives a nod to us and then begins his trek back to his quarters. 

We all turn to each other, “I’m going to go get food supplies.” Desca states, and as she turns to perform the task, I noticed that she hadn’t let go of Maya, who seemed more than happy to be led along. 

“Okay you two go get the food, we’ll take care of everything else.” I state, at the doorway, Desca gives a halfhearted salute, and helps to usher Maya towards the kitchen. 

Before the rest of us could say anything, a certain _someone_ finally shows up late as usual. “Hey baby bird, what did I miss?” Keigo asks as he comes in from the balcony, having just landed. As he stands behind me and I can’t help but roll my eyes before turning around, pointedly poking his chest. 

“You’re late.” Looking up into his golden eyes, he affectionately rolls his in return, a jovial smile on his _very_ kissable lips. Chuckling he takes a few steps back, his hands waving back and forth in front of him as though in defense. 

“I had things to do and get.” He motions to the bag over his shoulder and then drops it to the ground. It landed with a heavy thud against the stone in such a way that it made me question how much it must have weighed, yet he made it look like it had been like tossing around a bag of flour.

Unperturbed by my realization, Hawks began to pull out blankets and pillows, “I got bedding for when we set up camp, this way we are slightly more comfortable then sleeping on the flat ground. I don’t know about you, babe, but my wings can’t take it, and with being in the dark forest we don’t want to try sleeping in the canopy. Leoglets (Leopard/Eagles) have their young around this time of year, and they’re _extremely_ territorial when it comes to their young.”

I’m sure that I looked embarrassed with how I had reacted, but shook it off and gave him a kiss on the cheek, “Thanks babe, but you did miss some important stuff, you should go talk to Shoto to catch up, he has the mission plans.” He smiles and walks over to Shoto and I can’t help but smile in return as Hawks slaps the knight’s shoulder, nearly knocking him over as Shoto vehemently glares at him. In front of him the map with various tokens representing their battle plans, were scattered across the table, as though they were now in a battle sequence across the entire forest. 

Rubbing the back of my neck, I look around and wonder what the hell I should be doing. I look down at the bedding on the ground and huff, bending over to start packing it back in the bag. “He didn’t have to leave it here.” As I stuff blankets into the bag, a shadow casts over me and I look up. Katsuki was standing over me with his arms crossed across his chest, a defiant snarl on his face. 

“I hear you guys are going to hunt that sorcerer Dabi down, yeah?” He inquires as I stand up, noticing how much taller he is than me and can’t help but to huff internally.

“Yeah, we are.” I state, slinging the bag over my shoulder, and finding that the weight really wasn’t as bad as I had initially thought, “we’re just getting ready to leave.” I go to move and he blocks me, _‘I guess he had more to say’_ ‘“Is there something that you want, _Sir/Knight_ Bakugou?” I can’t help but wonder if he’s jealous or wants to join us, but either option wouldn’t work in our favor for the battle plans. Much less the fact that should anything happen here, it would likely be between Aizawa, Blood Vlad, and Bakugou to keep things at bay if the mission failed. 

“Why is it the two _newbies_ , a knight in training, and two veterans are being teamed up to go after the best Sorcerer we know in this side of the _country_?” His eyes narrow at me as I don’t answer him immediately. Pulling my shoulders back, I just stare, making sure to take a breath before I say something that I could regret. “Are you going to answer me?” He audibly cracks his knuckles in warning, “I’m asking you a _god damn_ question, _Lady_ Knight.” He growls lowly, and I can’t help but to find myself biting the inside of my cheek before sighing. 

“If you have a problem with the team, go talk to Aizawa. He’s the one that put this team together. I don’t have time for this chest puffing bullshit.” Readjusting the bag more on my shoulder, I turned away from Bakugou and began to walk away. 

Without warning, a hand was on my shoulder and I was spun around with Bakugou,directly in front of my face, “The team should have all veteran knights, not some flashy newcomers!” I hear a crackling sound and drop the bag before wings swing forward to block a hand that held a fire bomb coming at me. I wince as I feel the fire explode on my wing but I push back and make him move back a few feet. 

“What the hell is _your_ problem, Bakugou!?” I growl at him as he raises his fist, another explosion beginning to crackle in the palm of his hand. 

Everyone else has now turned to see what is going on, Shoto holding Hawks back and out of the corner of my eye I see Desca and Maya running back into the planning room, whether they were done in the kitchen or not, I couldn’t tell. I keep my eyes trained on him as a few feathers in my back release themselves and float behind me, waiting in anticipation. “ _I_ should be on this team, not _you,_!” He comes at me again but this time I jump in the air and the feathers dart towards him. Hooking the cloth on his shoulders and on his pants, I swing my arm, and telekinetically move the feathers to anchor him to the ground. 

“We do _not_ have time for a wannabe number one knight attacking other knights, over some half-cocked notion of who has worked harder, and who deserves _bullshit_!” I growl out as I hover in the air, “We have work to do, and if you have an issue boom boom boy, take it up with someone else!” I descend and land, my boot landing right next to his head with a loud thud. Looking at him as he struggles to get up with four feathers pinning him down and grind my boot more into the dirt next to his head, “Get over yourself, Bakugou, or you’ll never make it past your post in life, this is just sad.” 

I give him one more look before I hear some low humming and look over to see Desca trained on the blond. Looking back down at him, all I can do is shake my head and take a step back, his face was crestfallen and eyes were on the verge of tears, even while he tried to hide his face in his shoulder. 

“Saku, move away!” Maya calls out to me as Desca keeps humming. I nod and move away, picking up the bag as I do and then watch my best friend as she manipulates a fellow knight into submission. _‘this is some crazy scary shit! But wow!’_ I think as I end up moving closer towards Hawks and Shoto. 

I notice Desca going quiet and Maya moving to Katsuki, pulling each feather out and tossing them in the air behind her; instantly they flew back into my wings amongst the other feathers. Cocking my head to the right I watch as Maya helps the knight up. “Katsuki, you are going to need to go home, take a bath and then sleep.” The girl states and all the man does is nod his head. He was completely pacified and his personality was almost non-existent, even from here, I could tell, whatever Desca had done to him, he likely wouldn’t recover from immediately. 

As he leaves, I feel a hand on my right shoulder and I look up to see Hawks next to me, “You okay, babe?” He asks with concern in his eyes. I nod and give a tight lipped smile, even while I could feel my heart simultaneously pumping with adrenaline and dread. This wouldn’t be something that Bakugou would forget, even if he had been pacified, for now. 

“He needs to control his temper.” I state simply and hand over the bag I had picked up, “Excuse me, sweetie, I need to check on Desca.” He takes the bag with a nod of understanding, with a gentle squeeze to my shoulder, he gives me a reassuring smile and I make my way to Desca who was actually shrugging Maya’s help off. 

As soon as I was close enough, Desca ran to me and buried herself into my side. I sigh as I see the hurt look on Maya’s face but still wrap an arm around Desca to pull her close “Hey, you did good. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t done that.” I rub her side gently, trying to sooth her as I hear a couple sniffles. _‘Shit, she’s crying!’_ I walked her to the same bench we were at a day or so ago and we sit down. 

She moves her head to my shoulder and I wipe a couple tears away, “Hey baby, you alright?” I ask as I move some hair out of her face. She only nods a little so I keep my arm around her as I see Maya slowly approaching, hesitant at first, I nod to let her know that it’s alright, as she continues to move to stand behind the bench. Putting my focus back on my best friend, “You never actually had to forcibly use it on a knight before, have you?” 

Desca shakes her head and takes a deep breath. “Nope, only thugs, villains and the like. Minus Maya here for practice. What was going on? All I know is that I felt your anxiety go way up?” She looks at me, of course she would be more concerned about me and how I was feeling. _‘This girl I swear is like my bestie soulmate!’_ She always seemed to put others’ feelings first. 

Grasping her hand in reassurance, it was something I had expected, it was _Bakugou_ afterall. “He’s jealous of the team being sent out, he thinks more veteran knights should team up and take Dabi down.” I state with a shake of my head, “he just needs to keep his temper in check, and mind his own business, and keep tabs on the compound.” 

“I felt you and I just rushed back...Maya didn’t even know why until we got here and I saw you two standing off.” Her voice was starting to get stronger and I relaxed a bit more. Scratching the back of my head awkwardly, I definitely couldn’t deny that, it had escalated pretty quickly. 

“Yeah, sorry about that sweetie. He attacked and I reacted, pinned him down and made a point before you started your thing. Are you sure you are okay?” I give her another side hug and look over my shoulder at Maya, whose eyes were trained on us but she says nothing, but I can see the way her jaw is set, and the way her eyes look off to the side in anger, that maybe she didn’t even recognize, yet. 

Nodding her head, Desca smiles a little “I’ll be fine, thanks, I just didn’t like the feeling of you in trouble...it...made me _angry_.” I pull her into a huge hug, holding on really tight as I feel her arms wrap around me. 

Kissing her on the cheek, I pull back to look her in the eyes, “I love you Desca, you are so amazing, and powerful, and _amazing_!” smiling when I see her with a smile on her face, I pull her into yet another hug, until I feel her squeeze back, whether she needed to breathe or wanted to continue talking, I couldn’t tell, and nearly didn’t care. We both jumped a little when we heard a cough and looked back to see Maya still standing there, her lips in a thin line and her cheeks tinted, likely not in amusement. 

“We need to get going, we’re running out of daylight.” She states and walks towards the rest of the group that seems to have gotten everything together. _‘Great, I barely did anything to help again, ugh’_

We get up and start moving towards the group but I pull Desca back just a little, “I think Maya is jealous.” I look at the girl and she tries to sneak a look over her shoulder. 

“What? Maya jealous of what?” Desca asks as we walk, and as I peer over at her, a small blush begins to develop on her cheeks as she looks at the female knight in front of us, but I can’t help but to notice that she isn’t looking at Maya’s back, her gaze went a little lower than that . . . 

“Us I think…” I trail off as we get closer to the group and then lean closer, whispering. “Don’t think she knows we are just best friends.” I smile as we rejoin the group and Desca does the same. She just moves to stand by Maya and I move to Hawks' side, but nevertheless I see a possessive hand immediately reach out for Desca’s as the woman immediately beams at Desca and animatedly whispers to her. 

“Are you two ready to go?” Hawks asks with a smile, his gaze also taking in Maya and Desca. 

“I think we are.” I reply and see Desca whispering to Maya and the girl smiles and nods. _‘there ya go Desca, go get ya girl.’_ I lean into Keigo’s side, “Let’s ride out then, we have the cart that Maya can drive and the rest of us have horses that’ll be waiting at the North gate.” Nodding in agreement, we all start to make our way towards the gate, just as clouds begin to roll in overhead. 

As we leave the compound I see Maya climb onto a large cart full of supplies. _“we are off to save the world I guess.’_ Our little group weaves through the streets, as we head to the North gate. Many children waving at a group of knights leaving the city and getting excited. Most of us wave back as we go by. There were a few people who shied away from us, afterall, who wouldn’t be intimidated by a group of knights, accompanied by Hawks and Todoroki? We were a formidable looking group, who could blame them? 

In the cart seat, Maya was watching how Desca and Saku were reacting to one another. The way they would move around one another as they walk, almost like a dance the two didn’t even know they were doing. If Saku got just a bit too close, Desca instinctively moved away just enough to where they wouldn’t bump into one another. And it went vice versa when Desca got too close to Saku. 

At other times, hands would brush against one another, it didn’t even matter when both had their hands covered. They would look down at their hands and then at each other and just simply smile as they kept moving along. _‘Wonder if they are together?_ It seemed a peculiar thought, especially as she looked between Hawks and Saku, there was definitely something going on between those two, without a doubt in the world. _Saku is definitely with Hawks, he hasn’t bat an eyelash at another person since Saku showed up. It wouldn’t be unheard of . . ._ Scowling at the thought, Maya clenched her hands into fists, making sure to keep a steady hand on the reins of the horses. 

Taking a few deep breaths as she berated herself silently, _We’re not going to go down that rabbit hole, Maya! Positive thoughts!_ Looking back up as they began to pass through the Northern Gate, popularly the Kohera Forest Gate. The cobbled stonework having protected the city for centuries, and it would likely be there long after she was gone from Musutafa, maybe go out west. Coming to a stop, Maya nodded at the soldier that checked his list for their mission report paperwork from Sir Aizawa. With a quick signature, the squire nodded and waved her to continue on. Even while his eyes were tracking Hawks and _Saku_. 

Granted they didn’t stay in the air for long, even now, Maya could see that Hawks must have been showing her how to do an emergency landing. They twirled like violent leaves in the wind, cutting through the sky towards the ground, a blur of red and purple feathers. In front of her at the stable, at the last moment, both mutant-class avian Knights, snapped their wings open, and somehow managed to make their landing looking intentional and graceful, even while the cloud of dust behind them said otherwise. 

Huffing in annoyance, Maya watched how Hawks went out of his way to pull two horses out of the stable, giving a quick demonstration on how to climb a horse with wings. As though she couldn’t do it herself . . . regardless, she must have understood the principle as Saku got up on her horse with ease minding her dagger-like feathers. _‘Probably saving energy to fly later on’_ Gritting her teeth, Maya watched as the purple haired knight offers a hand to Desca, to help climb up behind her, even though she had her _own_ horse. To Maya’s surprise though, Desca shakes her head and playfully bats her hand away, “I think I’m gonna ride with Maya, bestie.” She states. 

As she turns, Saku winks at her and nods her head, _‘what did **that** mean?’ _ Maya shrugs it off and smiles brightly as Desca approaches, “Mind if I join you up there?” she asks and Maya nods and scoots over so the Bard Rogue can hop up. 

“Would love if you did, can only stand it for so long leading these horses around.” She replies and switches hands on the reins, “don’t want to ride your own horse or with Lady Saku?” 

“Nah, I love Saku with everything I am, she’s my best friend, but I want to sit with you.” She says with a smile, “this way we can get to know one another better.” Settling in next to Maya, Desca unstraps her ukelele and sets it behind them securely in the cart. They both look ahead to the rest of the group. Everyone was mounted, the mission was officially a go. 

“Let’s head out!” Hawks shouts to the group, wheeling his horse to the front. With a fist raised into the sky, they all give a quick shout in agreement, before the horses were spurred forward into the forest. Maya clicks her tongue to get the two horses to start pulling the cart when she feels an arm wrap around her own. She can’t help the grin that forms on her face as they set out. 

**TBC**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Exxie23 for editing our insanity!!!!


	5. Chapter 4 Part 2: Arabis Dinch and a Fuck Boi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Villains don’t come out to greet our fair Knights, who knew? Thus a watch is established to make sure that everyone is prepared for anything. Good thing it’s called the Dark Forest, where anything can happen, good, bad, ambivalent.

****Base Camp in the Dark Forest****

“Saku, next shift is yours.” Without warning, Shoto passed out on the ground, like a sack of rocks. I couldn’t help but wonder if his training with Endeavor had created a switch in his mind that worked like an on/off switch for non-emergency situations. Smiling at the simplicity of the situation, I poured some water that Shoto had brought earlier from a nearby lake into two cups to set by the fire to warm the water to make some tea. I’m sure Desca would want some after her trek through the woods. If anything with the chill that was hanging in the air, warm liquids would be for the best. So far everyone at camp had drunk the water while it was still cold and then called it a night, wanting to leave early in the morning to search for Dabi’s castle.

Poking at the kindling in the flames, there were no words spoken, at first I figured he wasn’t serious, until a small snore cut across the silence of the night. Otherwise, Maya had herself in a tent, and Desca had gone to gather more logs and kindling for the fire. Hawks was on his bed, his red plumage sticking out behind him and every now and then the feathers would ruffle and twitch in his sleep. 

As I got up to make a round around the camp, I had to keep myself from jumping at every little rustle of a leaf or branches rubbing together. But it’s part of the job and I may not like it but I would do it. I’m halfway around the camp when I hear footsteps off to my left, but I relax as Desca walks around a large tree with arms full of wood for the fire. “Find any good wood out there?” I ask with a smirk, chuckling when Desca shakes her head and grins.

“Well you know Saku, wood wood is good good.” I hear the mirth in her voice and it makes me smile; I definitely missed her company this last week. Appraising her silhouette in the firelight, Desca had definitely come alive more in this world. Something here just really connected with her, whether it was the time she had spent here, or the realization that her abilities gave her a control that would otherwise never exist in their world. “Want some company after I put the logs by the fire?” Her voice seemed to echo through the trees, although it was obvious that she was facing me. Nodding, I began leaning on a tree next to me as I waited for her to place some wood by the fire with the rest of it being meticulously placed into the fire to keep it from burning out. Chuckling as she continued to choose which logs to add, I froze when I heard a vehement whisper of _“Fuck!”_ Soon followed by what I assumed was large pieces of wood falling to the ground and maybe onto Desca’s foot.

A few minutes go by and I hear the same footsteps, albeit staggered out, as though someone was walking with a limp. Wincing in realization, Desca hobbled over to her, a determined look on her face of controlled pain and anger. “Did the good wood get you?” I asked with a snicker as I dodge a punch to the arm. 

“You, Saku are insufferable sometimes!” Desca states with a smile and then pushes her shoulder into mine, “How is the night watch going?”

“Just started it, Shoto passed out when he came back. _Literally,_ he came back to tell me we were switching and dropped by the fire.” Gesturing towards his prone form next to the fire, the only indication he was alive was the occasional snore that cut through the night and the crackling fire. “But a six-hour shift can do that after all of the riding that we did just to get here.” I stated as we began to walk the rest of the way around the camp. “I’m surprised you’re still up. I think Maya went to sleep a while ago, probably when I started my shared shift with Shoto?” I was admittedly curious how things were going with those two, the entire ride out here they spoke non-stop. Maya had even laughed, a surprisingly bright and bubbly sound that I hadn’t expected from the knight that seemed to constantly have their gaze fixed on me or Desca. I couldn’t help but notice a blush start to dust over Desca’s cheeks, _’Oh, did they talk about more than the usual stuff?’_

”Yeah, she was pretty tired after the long ride. Then we trained for a bit so that wore her out.” Desca replies as she ducks under a low hanging branch as they slowly begin to drift away from the camp to speak more openly, so we wouldn’t disturb anyone else. “ _Geez_ you short people really do have it easier with branches and shit.”

Stopping in my tracks, slowly turning my head and looking up at Desca, “You seriously just went…” I trail off as I hear something moving to our left, Desca looking as well and I squint my eyes. Then I try not to squeak in fear, as though pulling itself from the darkness, a huge spider walked into a small clearing ahead of us. Not some six-inch tarantula, feeling my heart begin to pump in true terror, my fingers clenched painfully as I came to a horrifying realization. This thing was bigger than me! As it seemed to stand, stretching its spindly legs out, it only seemed to get larger, what little moonlight that trickled in causing its eight eyes to fixate on the two of us. “D-de-desca...s-s-spider!” I whisper-yell and back into Desca who was directly behind me, her arms reaching around my feathers that had apparently fluffed out, whether in warning or in fear. The spider had taken notice, a sharp hissing sound that made my breath catch and my heart skip a beat in the worst way possible.

“Don’t be too loud, that thing could eat us both for dinner!” Desca whispers in my ear and then slowly steps around me. She draws some daggers, from where I couldn’t begin to guess as I hadn’t been able to discern from the darkness. _“Why doesn’t she use her power?’_ I couldn’t help but wonder as she motions for me to get low. Crouching behind her, we slowly moved forward. Even with a limp, Desca didn’t seem to make a sound amongst the underbrush, whereas my own steps seemed to echo in my ears obnoxiously. Glancing to the side to check our perimeter, I noticed that my wings had begun to fan out. I Drew them back in as close as possible as we _definitely_ didn't need to make any unnecessary noise at a time like this. 

“Babe, what are you up too...just lull it into submission.” I state, as I settle beside her right at the edge of the clearing. The spider had stopped at what looked like a small pond and was drinking, this thing was the size of a _FUCKING_ horse!? Surely it would be there for a while; whether they attempted to kill it or run, anything would be better than being caught in the crosshairs of that _thing’s_ line of sight! Desca glanced at me, her brows furrowed in confusion and exasperation before she focused back on the creature in front of them. Personally, I couldn’t stop my eyes from trailing each of its eight legs that occasionally tapped on the ground in an erratic pattern, before it would dunk its fangs back into the water, and audible noise would fill the air, and fill my chest with a new feeling of fear. “That would normally be a _great_ idea, but how do I do that to a fucking _spider_? My ability only works on humans, not _THAT_!” She flips the dagger, catching the blade tip and raises her hand. Is she really about to throw a dagger at that thing? As though a game of bullseye or darts with its eyes won’t keep it from running at us like a freight train! 

In an instant the dagger was thrown but it didn’t imbed itself in the spider, instead it sunk into the ground on the other side of the pond. The spider seemingly startled, backs up a few paces and looks around before seeing the dagger. With a speed I didn’t believe its body should have been _allowed_ to have, it leapt across the pond like a damn _cat_ pouncing on a bug. Its eyes fixated on the glinting piece of metal, as one of its legs tentatively reached out for the dagger. _Oh, fucking hellll no. I did **not** want to die by a knife wielding **spider**! What was Desca up to?_

_  
_

Quickly my best friend rushed out and was holding a rope, _‘where the hell did she get that rope from?’_ I couldn’t help myself but to ask as I followed quickly, keeping my body close to the ground. Just in case I needed to pretend to be dead to escape. Would the spider leave me alone? Consider me to be spoiled goods and move on? Or would I be a Saku-smoothie for the monster of a beast that had no right nor reason to exist in this world. Or any world/plane of existence for that matter. As though sensing my abysmal thoughts, Desca gave me a quick look and made a quick motion towards the legs of the spider, and then indicated the rope that she shook in her hand. A devilish look in her eyes. A sinking feeling filled my chest, as the lightbulb of bad ideas flickered on in understanding. _If that thing lands on me, Desca. I **swear** I’ll haunt your ass, **puta** (bitch)! _ Tossing me one end of the rope, as though in sync we run as fast as we can towards the towering behemoth, its intimidating size making me wish I could puke and simultaneously move on, or die quickly. 

Running to either side of the creature, the overwhelming stench of blood, aged guts, and wet animal fur made me wish that my wings could be as removable as Hawks’ so that I could just shove some feathers into my olfactory senses, no smell no problem. Gulping to hold back the nausea, Desca and I both ran around the body that had still been fixated on the glistening dagger. Passing each other as we crossed the ropes, I took 0.0000000001 seconds to tighten the rope that immediately dropped the spider in on its own legs. With amazing speed Desca flicked her wrists and the rope flipped as though it had somehow come alive and looped into a knot. Wasting no effort at all she pulled tight, with me quickly pulling tight as well, my adrenaline causing me to ignore anything that wasn’t my body and the spider’s continued existence, that needed to come to a quick end! 

Hissing and snapping in anger, the spider lands on its side as we tie off the rope and I jump back, momentarily becoming airborne, an angle I regret having to see. I _really_ hate spiders! 

Desca walks around it and pulls another dagger out, this time from her boot and it was longer than the previous; maybe a nine-inch blade. “Saku, this is an arabis dinch, they’re known to kill small animals and children for food. I had to kill a few in Kohera during the winter, they’re drawn to warm areas.” She flips the knife again and holds the hilt out to me. “You’re pointing that in the wrong direction, honey bun.” Keeping her gaze on mine steadily, her hand didn’t move, the blade still outstretched to me, “Pero por qué yo (But why me)?” I hesitantly take the dagger and look towards the spider, it was trapped and hissing at us in anger, it’s eyes zeroed in on me in a way that I didn’t want to see myself reflected on at least five eyes of seething _fuck you mortal_ inducing rage. Swallowing _hard_ I saw the fangs, and knew that this was not something I wanted to have track me down, stab me, dance on my corpse, and then turn me into a Saku-smoothie.

Looking to the bard-rogue, I couldn’t help but calmly state, “Where is the fastest way?” Pointing at the head, another wave of nausea washed over me, like a bad movie. _Of course_ it has to be the head. “Seriously, I gotta get close to those body dissolving, venom inducing chompers?!” The urge to run had never been stronger in my life, and I _hated_ the thought of running on a good day! 

Shrugging, the motion seemed far too easy for the thing that Desca was asking for me to do, “I can do it if ya want, killed three so far while I have been here. One almost ate me so I don’t have any lost love with these things.” Shifting her weight onto her right foot, she rests a hand on her belt, waiting for my decision. 

Taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly, I couldn’t help if the sound came out as more resigned than excited or mortified. Taking a step closer to the head I can see how agitated this _arabis dinch_ was...this wasn’t like at home where we could suck up a spider in a vacuum. Or apparently light a home on fire, Christ, this thing could probably eat the house before I could find a good blow torch besides Shoto or Dabi. 

As I get closer to the spider’s head, its body begins to thrash violently as it tries to break free of the ropes, the motion seemingly tightening anything that had been _too_ loose. Chancing a glance at the ropes, it looked like they were too tight, the legs now twitching as the legs were being cut off, the knot holding strong. _Hold out for me, Krak des Chevaliers!_ I say to myself. I raise the dagger and aim for the top of its head and without a second thought, especially when its fangs jutted out in warning once more, I plunged the dagger deep into its head and held it there. The body began to spasm and the legs in the ropes seemed to vibrate before the spider’s body went completely still, a resounding growl leaves its body as it seems to fold in on itself almost immediately. 

Feeling a hand over mine, I look up to see Desca slowly pulling the dagger out of the dead spider, “See, just a spider when tied up. Trust me, you did this world a favor. These things are bad news wherever they go.” She gently cleans the blade on the grass and resheathes the blade in her boot, the concealed blade so completely seamless that I couldn’t tell what mechanism allowed for it to even be released. “Are you ready to go? Other animals will come and take care of it for us.” She unties the legs and starts to roll the rope back up, tucking it into a mechanism that seemed to exit through her sleeves. 

“Yeah, sounds good, ya know something bro?” I looked at Desca and finally let myself collapse to the ground, but not too close to the spider . . . the adrenaline completely exhausted my systems. Chuckling, Desca walks over next to me before crouching, her gaze telling me to continue. Taking a moment to relax next to the water, I reached out to ruffle her hair softly. “You keep surprising me.”

Smiling at me softly in return, she rubs my arm reassuringly, “I like to keep ya on your toes, makes it fun.” She tucks the rope into her belt on her back and it seems to disappear.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to leave this part of the night behind.” Working my way back onto my feet, I grasp Desca’s hand, and clench tightly as the parts of the spider’s body still seem to be in the throes of death, or slight recirculation as some of the legs continue to twitch menacingly.

“Then let’s get back to watching the camp, you know those guys are gonna gripe if we don’t.” I chuckle in agreement and we make our way back to camp. “If anything, we can read Shoto’s _love_ note that he was going to send in the morning.” Desca chuckled mischievously. 

“Yeah, that sounds fun,” taking a moment to register what Desca had just said, I couldn’t help but stop in my tracks momentarily to stare at Desca in shock at the new information, “Shoto’s _what_?!”

With a wicked laugh that normally sends a chill down anyone’s spine, “Yeah, he’s writing a letter to someone but he won’t say who. I am too curious to wait.” Desca’s eyes were filled with mirth as they walked closer to camp. I stare at her back for a second as I follow and then speeds up my steps and smacks the back of her head, “you are supposed to tell me shit like this! We are besties!”

Desca just laughs and shakes her head, “We’ve only been back together a week gees, besides I just found out earlier today anyway.” She smiles back at me and then it’s my turn to laugh as she trips over a tree root and falls forward with a “AAAHHHH!” I can’t help the loud laugh and I slap a hand over my mouth to try and stay somewhat quiet. 

The rogue grunts as she gets up and glares at me, I shrug my shoulders...like how was I supposed to know that would happen? She dusts herself off and sighs, “Why is it always me?” After gathering herself again, we begin to walk the now short trek back. “By the way Saku...the other day, I went to use the bathroom but had second thoughts cause I heard these moaning noises…” Desca trails off and I can practically hear the smirk cracking out on her face. Before I could even try and even lay one finger on her head, she sprinted away and I took off after her. 

We run into the camp and Desca skids to a halt by the fire and tries not to run into Shoto, still snoozing in the dirt where he fell after his shift. Smirking as he continued to snore, I jumped in realization as the two cups of water by the fire was now at a boiling point! 

“Desca! The tea!” I whisper-shouted just as she was about to reach into Shoto’s breast pocket for the letter that was poking out. Desca looks up and quickly grabs long metal tongs to pull the cups off the fire, gently setting them on the dirt beside the fire. She looks at me with a half smile, “don’t need him burned more...now can I go back to what I was doing?” I nod and she turns back around to see Shoto while still asleep, had turned onto his stomach. “Damn it!” Desca whispers in frustration, before turning back to me and checking the mugs.

“I guess we won’t be reading that letter this time around.” She walks over to a log we had pulled over earlier for seating and plops down. I sit next to her and nudge her shoulder, “This place is pretty insane, isn’t it?” I ask and stretch my wings a bit. She nods, “It is but you get used to it.” Desca leans back and sighs, “do you think we will find our way back home...if there is a home to go back too that is?”

The question, though not out of the ordinary, had actually shocked me. “I dunno, I mean is time passing like it is here or not. Are we stuck here...all I know is Dabi knows something.” I huff out a breath and then yawn, “we need to get some rest, I doubt anything else will come near camp tonight.”

Desca nods as she yawns as well, “Yeah, I don’t want to move though…” She leans her head on my shoulder, “I know the feeling baby.” I reply and lean my head against her, within minutes both of us succumbing to sleep. 

**** Near Arabis Dinch, here lies a Dead Bitch****

“It’s dangerous, outside your little circle, _dear_.” Dabi moves out from around the shadow of the tree that he’d teleported behind. Contrary to popular belief, he hadn’t intended to get involved in this little debacle. He had just been planning on waiting for them to make it to the castle. His plan would have worked well enough; conserve energy, sleep, and check on his succulents.

It was Toga and Stain that had gotten a burr up their asses about how close the Knights were to their own hideout. So, he’d go out and check if it kept them from bothering him any further. Shigaraki was supposed to be in the area within a fortnight, it wouldn’t bode well if they didn’t have a meeting place. Not to mention the man perpetually traveled around with Kurogiri and Twice; if anything looks fishy, they’d be gone, and the opportunity to align themselves would be lost. 

Looking over their handiwork with the dead arabis dinch, they had certainly dispatched the juvenile beast quickly. Lord knows what would have happened had it called out for help. Although independent at birth, their broods never really moved far away, _hell_ the closest cluster of them was within the next few kilometers in the mountains that led to Kohera. There certainly had to be an arabis dinch over there the size of an imperial carriage, certainly large enough to walk away with any number of the cattle that would frequent the farmland there.

“You ladies even went and left me all of the best pieces,” rubbing his hands together, beggars didn’t need to be choosers when it came to free alchemical parts. Grinning at the new prospects in front of him, Stain would be so pissed to know he’d found more of those _damnable hell beasts_ , “don’t know if I should kiss you or send more your way.”

Taking a moment to go over the body, from his robes Dabi pulled out several bags and a variety of knives that he used to meticulously cut away the eyes of the arabis dinch and placed into one bag that had a fluid preservative. Its venom sacs, which although could make a great poison, were even better as a burn ointment. Looking at his hands, Dabi found himself frowning in distaste as the skin pulled taut in areas and bled lightly from overuse and strain from his powers. Taking a mental note, it would be of the utmost importance to begin the dilution process for the venom in his lab. Once the venom was diluted down enough, he would be able to mix it with his personal moisturizer, applying it would minimize the damage his skin had already taken from his most recent fight.

Breaking off the fangs, there were black markets that would take the more dangerous looking parts, like the claws, fangs, pieces of the jaw, webbing (which he never doled too much out, gotta keep them coming back). Whatever managed to crystalize in its cesspool of a stomach could usually be repurposed as jewelry or ornamental weapons or armor. Some of the finer hairs could be used as string for emergency sutures or as senbon. The skin was flame retardant, but surprisingly the oils directly beneath the skin were flame accelerants that could be used for lamps or fire starters, that is, if you could get past the smell. Too bad they were too dense to ever ask for anything in the digestive tract, that shit was downright toxic. 

“Poor little you, Arabis, you’ll have your corpse repurposed until you’re just bare _goo_ , and you never had the chance to meet a fancy dame that would bite your head off and procreate with your corpse.” Dabi snickered as he leaned on a nearby tree and pulled out a neatly folded note with the Todoroki seal, one he’d emulated and left on the youngest of Enji’s children that slept soundly next to their campfire, unaware of the dangers occurring nearby. It was a good thing that his sleeping potion that he’d slipped into the nearby water supply had done its job.

It was hard enough to get the cold-shouldered boy to do anything whilst he was aware. Whenever he’d traveled to the forest, he’d always drink from the lake that the arabis dinch would use, it was a sure sign that the water was clean. From what he could tell though, the rest of their party had used this same watering hole to refill, except Desca and Saku. Whether because they were still using the water from Musutafa or because being in this world meant they were still rationing their supplies like they would in their reality, it was hard to say.

Regardless, since sleeping potions were usually unflavored, it made it easier to slip into the reservoir that ran near the castle to this position. Besides taking physical damage, only the first light of dawn would wake any of the members that had drank from the lake, or the nearby river for that matter. Once the burning dawn hits the water though, that would be it, the barest of changes in temperature would burn the potion out, leaving the water clear and clean.

“I think I can at least give you some solace though, to the toils of love.” Leaning against a tree leisurely, Dabi flourished Shoto’s letter from his cloak and broke the seal with an insidious smile. “ _Dearest Izuku_ , aww, they’re closer than the last time I intercepted one of these! Isn’t that just adorable Arabis?” He’d checked the letter for any codes, but for the most part it just seemed like a normal love letter with the normal amount of mush, poetic pandering, and an update on their location. The letter he’d left pretty much read to the same idea, omitting a few _details_ that would otherwise be important.

“ _Katsuki is doing well, although he still can’t maintain his temper around others. He attacked our newest Knight, Lady Saku. You would like her, she’s . . . bubbly to say the least, and I think you and Desca would get along. In our last letter, she was the one that held me hostage._ Kinky, I really should meet that kid sometime, all Stain did was bitch about her. _Like the moon reflected on the water, I see you in everything, but you’re never around. . ._ _Such a sad little boy, am I right, Arabis?” Of course_ _Dabi_ was the one standing in the middle of a haunted forest next to a dead hell beast reading a love letter, so really, what did that say about him? How far had he fallen because of these _interlopers_? He was hardly the villain he’d sworn he’d be, anymore, it felt more of an ambiguous idea than a part of his identity.

Looking back down at the letter, it was at least almost over, kudos to Shoto, he was brief. _“Momo said that you and Toshinori are scouting in the north for the Arabis Dinch Cluster, so far nothing to report here. There is a small group of us looking for the wizard, Dabi. He’s been seen in the area, but otherwise he’s an enigma to our party. Currently traveling north through the Kotafa Forest, meet you at our place?”_ That was interesting, there had been whispers and rumors circulating that the Knight Commander All Might had retired. To find out that he was actually training the next generation of scouts was an interesting turn of events at least. _“Please, give Sir Toshinori my regards and stay safe, the forest has seemed more wild as of late. Forever yours, Shoto.”_

In his grasp the paper began to ignite, the blue flames licking along the paper. Crumpling the letter in his hand, it would be easier to hide the evidence of his underhanded scheme this way. Dabi tossed the burning remnants into the spider’s corpse and allowed the flames to consume the flesh of the spider to act as a deterrent for other creatures. Once it was thoroughly cooked something else could take care of the corpse, probably leoglets, they should have had their young by now. 

Turning away from the small fire, a leisurely walk would probably do him some good. Everything as of late had been to push Saku towards him, and truth be told, the ouroborus seal would take time. Time that they may ultimately not have readily available. 

At the rate things were decaying in their world, things would last another year at best if everything continued as it was. Fires had all but consumed the western part of the country. Flooding was overwhelming the south and eastern parts of the country. Monsters that were normally dormant were raging across the land, as though they were trying to destroy the world with a peace that no one else could understand. Landslides had cut off the northernmost part of the country, Kohera was the furthest outpost that could still be reached. It wouldn’t be long before the wind storms would overtake the normally peaceful fields here in the central part of the country, or they could have the ground tear open below them. Nothing could be thrown off of the table at this point.

Even now, Dabi could hear the gnashing of teeth from above him, the leoglets were either nursing their young, or preparing to pounce on his head. Personally, Dabi hoped for the former as that meant the feral cats wouldn’t be willing to leave their young very often, only to go hunting for food.

Holding his hand out, he started a small orb of fire to lead him through the densest part of the forest, where even the light couldn’t break through the canopy of the trees. This was the worst part of the forest by far; a localized hallucinogenic fungi where the spores were constantly hanging in the air. He’d been tortured by the damnable spores on more than one occasion, but tonight, maybe it would give him guidance, unlike his witch’s eye that had only directed him towards Saku and Hawks.

Feeling the cloying texture of the spores in his chest, the effect was subtle, but he could feel it occurring. Once he left this part of the forest, the effects would end immediately, otherwise it could provide the answers that he needed. From the _one_ person that could give them to him.

“You’ve grown, Touya.” It wouldn’t do any good to look for the apparition, it was all a trick, the best he could do was talk back and keep moving forward, following the trailing of runes that lit up to guide him to the castle. “How many years has it been, son?”

“You're not the one that I need to speak with . . . and my name is Dabi. Touya is _gone_.” He said firmly, this is who he is now, and forevermore. 

“Didn’t I tell you, _boy_ ,” Enji’s voice echoed around him menacingly, “I don’t want to see you around me, or my _children_ ” Pushing through the heat wave, the shadows of the trees only worked to disorient him on his path. Losing focus of where he was at, Dabi lashed out, careful to not start his fire power. The fire could cause the spores to explode, and Dabi wasn’t ready to leave this world _yet_.

“I was one of your children _too_ , Endeavor.” His father had been the one to see him out of the village when he’d been nothing but a child. Granted, the soothsayer claimed his birthright by a kaleidoscope of salvo butterflies.

In his village they were a sign of disaster, ill fortune, the one who will walk a desolate path spurned by the fires of hell. A disasteristic that lot had been. It was alright though; in the end, Dabi had proven the old man’s prophecy to be true, when he burned the parish to the ground. With the soothsayer inside.

“You were nothing but a mistake. Your power couldn’t be contained, and you contaminated everything you touched.” Enji’s voice continued on, as though he were conversing with some old friend . . . “Had you not been born cursed, maybe none of this would have happened, _Dabi_. My son, _Touya_ is gone, lost to this world.” With that, the apparition dissipated, likely to be replaced by another one, would it be Natsuo this time? Or Fuyumi? Certainly not Shoto, the boy had barely known him before their father had thrown him out in fear of the soothsayer’s’ prophecy.

Feeling around until his hand connected solidly against the trunk of a tree, Dabi steadied his breathing and felt the essence in the tree. Feeling for the magic runes he had placed in the area, Dabi used the tree as a conduit to redirect himself back towards his clear-cut path back towards the castle. This was a night, Dabi would be more than happy to leave behind.

Working his way back to where his magic rune was strongest, Dabi hadn’t diverged from the path very far, but the strength of the spores had caused the hallucination to become more vivid than usual. Whether it was a sign that he was losing his touch, or the spores were getting kinky this late at night, anything was possible at this point. Redirecting himself on the familiar path, Dabi prayed nothing else would bother him on his _enjoyable_ midnight stroll.

“Touya is only gone for as long as you hide in the shadows, darling.” The soft laughter that cut through the spore haze made his heart pound painfully. _That_ was the apparition he needed, the one that had first outstretched a hand to him when he’d been nothing at all. “But that’s not why you’re here, is it? No, you’d only come to visit if it was an emergency.”

It wasn’t real, but the way her voice would lilt like a song, it took him back, “Alborotador, you’ve grown, but you still have a lot to learn.” She chided softly, and Dabi wanted to pretend for a moment that as a breeze blew by him, that it was her kind hands caressing his cheek and ruffling his hair, a maternal gesture that had been fitting at the time. Now, it only left a pit in his stomach at what he hadn’t been able to do for the woman that had saved him. “But that’s alright, do you still have the spell that I taught you, niño (boy)? The one that will save us all?”

“I still have it, madre (mother).” He smiled whimsically and recalled the woman with the long dark hair and vibrant golden eyes, eyes that had seen a future she wouldn’t live to see, “I’ve started the first part of it on the girl you foresaw. The one with the purple hair and wings, her name is Sakura Flor,” He averted his eyes for a moment bashfully, and ran a hand through his finger, “but she goes by Saku.” Hopefully even as an apparition, she wouldn’t comment on his cheeks that burned with a blush, “The ouroboros seal has been started, but I don’t know when it will finish, this magia salvaje (wild magic) doesn’t work like my normal magic.”

“Magia salvaje is slow to grow, niño. It requires one to lose sight of what they are truly looking for. En un momento de serendipia (in a moment of serendipity), the snake will grow. All is as it should be, alborotador, when the girl loses to herself, that is when the time will be right. Then, you will need to begin the casting circle, so that the serpiente (snake) can open the door between here, and my world.” He Shudders at the reality of how much magic would be required, the ouroborus seal had taken a lot out of him and activating it could prove to be even more exhaustive if he didn’t take precautions.

“Will they survive, Saku _and_ Desca?” There was a stillness in the air, as though even in this hallucinogenic state, his subconscious didn’t want to answer the question that hung in the air like a guillotine about to be dropped.

“They will survive, mijo (sweetheart/darling), so long as they have the resolve to live. No magia salvaje can be completed with half-hearted hope. True conviction will see this through. Be strong, mijo, mother will watch over you, even if you can’t see me. I’ll be here, rooting for you, Dabi.” Nodding in understanding, taking a step forward into the clearing, one last breeze blew into his face, even as steam blew behind him from his eyes. Mama Marisol had been gone a long time, but she’d taught him most of his current arsenal of spells, and had given him shelter from the world that had thrown him out as a child. A child capable of performing primal magic, he’d been banished to protect the welfare of the village and his siblings. Mama Marisol had taken him on as an apprentice, even while she herself admitted to him that she wasn’t from his world, rather one called Earth. 

He hadn’t believed her at first, until she started having visions of the future, and left him with a list of names of those that would come to this world from Earth. They would all fall, until the day a roguish-bard and a purple-winged knight would appear. This was the time that Mama Marisol had prepared him for, all those years ago. Dabi wouldn’t _allow_ himself to fail these two, much less the one that had managed to worm their way into his corazón (heart). 

“I still have a long way to go, and the night’s still young.” He grumbled as he came upon the castle, the monster parts now beginning to weigh him down. However, now Dabi was filled with a conviction to see this through, to prepare everything that would be required for the ultimate spell that would save them all; even if it came at the expense of his life or his magic.

****6 hours later, back at camp****

I’m walking in a meadow, hands brushing over the tall grass as I feel the sun on my face and a light breeze. Looking around, it was apparent that there was no one else with me, in this empty world. Ultimately, it felt calm and serene; like there were no problems and everything was carefree. _“Saku...Saku…”_ I hear a faint voice but otherwise the world around me seemed unperturbed. In the distance a storm began to roll in, turning the sky from blue to an angry grey. In front of me, as though I was watching the world around me from a bubble, the grass around me pulled in close. As the overcast clouds rolled over, the sound of thunder and lightning crashing into the ground startled me. Pulling my wings in, I didn’t feel the reassuring weight that I had come to look forward to, instead I was dressed as I had been on the night Desca and I were transported to this world. What in the world was happening?! Once more lightning began to strike the area around the bubble as a windstorm blew, only affecting the area around me. “ _Saku!_ ” 

Jumping as another strike seemed to rattle the ground. A hissing sound broke through the booming thunder that made it sound like bombs going off in the distance. Whipping around in the bubble, I stumbled to the ground as a giant snake began to lunge into the space. The bubble’s surface disappearing as the snake darted in, gaping maw spread wide to devour me!

“SAKU!” Jumping at the sound, heart pounding, I couldn’t keep my focus on anything as I blinked and allowed my eyes to dart around the area in apprehension of the snake that had been there but a few moments ago, hadn’t it?

Taking in the scenery around me, I was on the ground . . . where I had been leaning against Desca last night. Looking up, Hawks stood overhead, his face jovial with a boyish smile, but his eyes seemed concerned. Crouching down next to me, I couldn’t help but to reach out for his hand, to know that everything around me was _real_. Trying to pass off the nightmare as something akin to a falling dream . . . _could avian people even have falling dreams?_ It would have to be a question for science on a different day.

“What’s up?” I yawned, and used the distraction to cover my mouth for a moment and look around. The fire was still going, although it looked to have been re-appropriated to make breakfast, and beside the fire were the two forgotten mugs of tea. Looking to my left, Desca was still there but stretching as she woke up. Right. . .we’re hunting an elusive Dabi. Clasping Hawks’ hand once more, I gave him a small smile, to let him know that I was alright. After all, it had just been a dream, absolutely _nothing_ to see here! “Hey babe… did you dream of me last night?” 

He smiled, his brow raised in question, “You seemed to be having a dream there, is everything okay?” Nodding as he took a step back, I couldn’t help but sit in the moment and look around, still processing everything around me. Feeling a soreness on my back, it must have had something to do with the way that I had been slumped against Desca. It was the only thing that made sense besides the arabis dinch coming back from the dead to stab me in the spine in retribution for stabbing it in the skull. 

Looking over to my best friend, I couldn’t help but see the way that Maya would whisper to her. Hearing the sound of _someone_ clearing their throat I couldn’t help but to look up at the blond man, “Yes, Keigo?”

“Would you like to join me on a patrol?” He steps back and flaps his wings a bit to give them a stretch. Nodding I began to stand upright as well, bending my back until I could hear the inevitable popping noises and groaned in ecstasy. As though in response, my wings began stretching to their full length, but at the last moment I retracted them when I heard a gruff groan of surprise. Pulling them back towards me quickly I turned around to see Shoto with a small cut along the side of his face. Looking closer, I had to cover my mouth in a mix of mortification and inappropriate giggling. 

”Hey, Saku! Watch where you put those!” As Shoto stood there swiping at the cut on his cheek. I couldn’t stop the few peals of laughter that broke through as Shoto began to pull a feather that had almost found its way up his nose. Letting my wings relax in response, I reached over for the stray feather that surprisingly hadn’t cut him. 

“Sorry about that Shoto!” I clasped my hands in apology, even while I probably still had a shit eating grin on my face, “I didn’t know you were over there!” Shrugging, Shoto simply turned and began to walk to one of the tents, his hand protectively over his breast pocket, shielding the letter from any onlookers.

Spinning back around to face Keigo, a similar smile was on his own face at the fiasco that had happened. I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d ever done anything similar when he went on missions like this. It was just so _easy_ to forget that my wings were attached to me sometimes. “Okay, lets get going or I won’t want to go at all!” I stated and gave what I hoped was a flirtatious wink to Keigo. Reaching out to take his proffered hand, it was interesting how our hands seemed to fit so easily in one another’s grasp. Saying a temporary goodbye to everyone, we started our patrol by heading into the woods. 

**To Be Continued**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks a bunch to our amazing Editor Exxie23, without them, we would have it a lot harder!


	6. Mile High Club

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SMUT!!! (LMAO)  
> Hawks and Saku get to know each other much better while on patrol. Desca and Maya grow closer. WHat’s happening with Shoto and the letter? Dabi is gathering his allies but what has he got planned?

**** Patrol and Extra Activities ****

If there was anything that could be said about going on a patrol, it was a significantly different experience during the daytime; in the night, whereas the forest had seemingly held its breath, during the daytime, everything came alive. There were birds in the trees, flitting between branches, their song echoing through the early morning mists. Frogs croaked from various bodies of water, their forms unseen. Although it was still fairly shadowed down here on the ground from the foliage cover above, there was something serene within the forest. It didn’t seem appropriate to be calling it a _dark_ forest at all. 

As Hawks and I walked through the trees, it didn’t seem possible that the world I had traversed last night was dangerous. My only reminder were the carcasses that were deposited throughout the forest’s floor. A number of trees near the lake had a surprisingly large number of bones lying along the base. The moment Hawks had seen them, he’d steered us both in a different direction, something about _leoglets_ and _pangles_ , it was all gibberish to me; just like pizzly bears and tigons. No reason to know something that I haven’t seen, but the look in his eyes made me wonder if this was something that I should keep in mind.

“You mentioned back at the lake, something about leoglets? But, what exactly is it? A fungus or something?” At mention of the name, Hawks’ shoulders rolled and his feathers seemed to twitch and fluff out involuntarily. As though the thought of a leoglet was enough to set off his fight-or-flight instinct.

As I reached for his hand, Hawks grasped my own without hesitation, his fingers erratically tapping against the back of my hand. Whether trying to sort him through his thoughts, a nervous tic, or something that was more innate to himself; I couldn’t say. What I could say was that his wings rubbed against my own and gently pulled me closer to him, as though we were wrapped up in some sort of fluffy blanket. Taking a moment to put my other hand atop our conjoined ones, I stopped just as we reached an opening in the trees that led to a grassy plain. Trees intermittently decorated the landscape up towards a mountainous ridge.

This . . . couldn’t be right? I had looked at the map before we left the camp, we were supposed to patrol the northside of camp closest to the last known location of the League of Villains’ hideout.

“We must’ve gotten turned around?” Looking up at Hawks, his lips were twisted into a smirk, one that made me think that this had all been part of a _different_ type of plan. “Or not?”

A blush crossed over his cheeks at seemingly being caught, but nevertheless he looked down at me, his golden eyes alight with mirth. “We’ve been so busy with all of these preparations; it just didn’t seem fair.” Raising our joined hands to his lips, he placed a gentle kiss onto both of my hands, his eyes peeking down at me. Cocking my head a little at what he could possibly have in mind, I couldn’t help but to raise my brows in question.

As our eyes met, I saw how his lips quirked upwards from around our hands as his expressive brows waggled, catching me off guard. Chuckling at his antics, I reached to put my arms around his neck, as his arms automatically wrapped around my lower back, being mindful of the feathers.

“What would you rather spend your time doing then?” Leaning in close, I could feel the wispy brush of his beard against my cheek as our lips brushed against one another lightly. Closing my eyes, his arms tightened around me as the kiss became _harder_ , whether from adrenaline, a need for intimacy, or an anchor . . . all I wanted was to forget last night, forget the dreams, and revel in something sinisterly more _carnal_.

Nipping at his lips for entry, I just wanted _more_. For a moment, I felt his lips begin to part in welcome . . . only for Hawks to push me back, his hands firmly on my hips, his grip gentle but firm. Gasping for a moment, I didn’t realize I hadn’t been breathing, but as I looked up into those golden eyes, the blush still dusted his cheeks; he pulled his hand back immediately from me to cover his face. Turning away from me, my heart hammered in my chest, what could have happened?

_Oh no_ , taking a few steps backwards, had I misunderstood something? Was this not what he had intended we were going to do. _Dammit Saku! Silence is not consent._

“I’m sorry!” Gasping at my actions, how could I have – How could this - I - I - I don’t know what I could have done differently. It felt like my mind was trapped in a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions that I couldn’t clearly define anything that was happening. “Hawks, I –"

“You’ve got nothing to apologize for, baby bird.” Was his voice always this hoarse? It reminded me of someone on the verge of tears, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out which one of us was about to break. “Please, just look up at me, you haven’t done anything wrong. Trust me.”

Looking up at him, Hawks held a hand out to me, and for once, it seemed like all of the calm and cool collection was gone. That wasn’t to say that Hawks wasn’t still one of the baddest things in the land, but there was something more _vulnerable_ in his gaze. Those golden eyes, normally so vibrant, seemed dulled down in some regard, like there was something more going on. 

“I have a story to tell you, babe,” He took a few breaths as he sat down on the ground, and patted the spot next to him, the view of the prairie going on into the horizon. “I want to be honest with you, baby bird.” Rubbing his chest for a moment, I decided to sit down next to him. Not sitting directly next to him, I would wait until he was ready to continue. “No,” his voice was a harsh whisper, “I _need_ to be honest with you.”

Holding out his hand, I gave him my own in return, as his gaze became fixated on the horizon. His fingers tapping to a rhythm only he would know, along the back of my hand. Pressing his hand against my chest, I wanted him to be able to feel how fast my heart had been racing, and so that he knew, I would stay right here by his side, supporting him in the best way that I could.

“I’ll be right here for you, for as long as you need me to be.” Bringing his hand to my lips, I gave a gentle kiss to the back of his hand. “Just know my love is not fragile, cariño (dear).”

***** Keigo Takami’s POV *****

_Dammit Keigo, why did you have to bring her here of all places! If we’d just followed along the lake, we could have been at the waterfall near the Kohera border! Romantic, elegant, and exciting!_ In reality though, he knew it wouldn’t have mattered. The moment the leoglets had had their pangle kittens, the waterfall had been off. He didn’t need to make the same mistake twice when it came to those monsters. 

They would use the waterfall and subsequent lake as a protected watering hole to clean their kittens, and to teach them how to swim and fly. An amazing sight for anyone daring or dumb enough to come across it. To be able to walk away unscathed could damn near make you a hero worth heralding.

“When I was young, this forest was where I would go out to play when I didn’t want to deal with the other children, or the adults.” He chuckled sordidly at the thought; the people he used to flee from, he now found himself protecting indiscriminately. It could have been poetic if it hadn’t been so twisted. “It gave me time to practice flying through the trees and gave me a lot of the survival skills that helped me climb the Knighthood ranks as quickly as I did.” As he releasing Saku’s hand, she sat patiently next to him. Her presence calming him, even while shame and regret threatened to overwhelm him, the need to flee from this place like an oppressive blanket weighing him to the ground.

He began to unbuckle and undress from his chest armor, it was all very intricate and elaborate. to the untrained eye, his armor looked like a simple gambeson and that would have been far simpler in comparison. Various magically imbued straps protected his most vulnerable places for when he was in flight, or if he was on the ground fighting hand-to-hand, with swords, or undergoing another round of espionage. Each strap was imbued with chrogusten, a magically enhanced metal that was meant to protect the wearer from weapons, magic, and a number of natural anomalies.

The armor had been a gift of sorts, although even that sounded like a stretch, considering who it had come from. He unsnapped the straps at his hips, underneath his armpits, around his throat. The material was invisible until it was completely removed, handy, except for the few times Keigo himself had forgotten that the material was on. He didn’t have a reason to bitch though, the armor had saved his life on more than a few occasions.

“But I wasn’t fast enough to outrun and outfly the leoglets when they were in mating season and when they were rearing their young.” Carefully disentangling himself from what would basically be a tunic at this point, it buttoned at his lower back, It didn’t surprise him when Saku gasped. It was the sound many had made when they realized he wasn’t as invulnerable as the criers, the tabloids, and the Knighthood made him out to be. Afterall, he was just as human as the rest of them, at the end of the day. 

He knew what she was seeing, it was the same sight that had greeted him everyday since the accident had happened. The deep and ugly scratches that marred his chest, back and thighs. The deep gouges of bite marks that had dug into his shoulders, left bicep, and right hip. All from angry leoglets that thought he was trying to abscond with their young pangles, a dark kitten that could have passed for any stray in the city. Anyone would otherwise be tempted, if not for their soot grey wings that would flap erratically while the young would cry for their parents. Parents that were never more than a few yards away.

Feeling pulled back in time to when the accident had first occurred, it was amazing that he’d even been able to get away, much less have someone _save_ him.

***** Flashback *****

How long had he laid on the ground, screaming and crying out for help? A part of Keigo’s mind thought it must have been a few minutes, another part swore it had been years. The leoglets were trying to teach their young how to hunt, and he’d been dumb enough to give himself up willingly. Much like the small crow that was near him, pounced on by the pangles he’d thought were his friends . . .

Just like Grandmaster Endeavor had taught him, monsters could never be friendly when they played with their prey; just to make them pray for death. _Great Goddess Kuralf Desor, forgive me for my transgressions, and grant me favor in your embrace. Please, rid me of this pain and suffering Lady Kuralf Desor, and I will serve your needs until you deem my services unnecessary any longer._

Just as he had been prepared to give himself over to the Great Goddess of Mercy that they’d taught him about in school, Keigo couldn’t help but wonder if he would go to the same place as the little crow next to him. Surely, the Great Goddess would finally help him reunite with his own kind, as there was no one in the Musutafu Region with his quirk. 

Feeling his body beginning to give out, all Keigo could do was stare listlessly at the dead bird next to him and wonder if the creatures would give him a quick end. He didn’t have to wait very long though as a bright blue wall of fire began to chase after the leoglets. Their spotted hides and yowling screams tearing through the forest floor, the parents in their hurry grabbing their young with such reckless abandon that one wound up getting left behind in their fear. 

_Even monsters can succumb to fear it seems._ Not having the energy to stay awake and aware of the world around him, Keigo fell into the Goddess’ embrace, and surrendered himself to the darkness of death. 

A sharp pain immediately brought him back to the present however, as a boy dressed out in black prodded him with his boot. Gasping in pain, Keigo tried to reel backwards, and only managed to groan and cry out as dirt entered his fresh wounds.

A woman’s musical voice stopped the boy above him from continuing his assault on his body. In a tongue that Keigo couldn’t understand, it was apparently a directive of some sort, as the boy took off, a waterskin in his hands.

“Drink this, child.” Not questioning whether it was poison or medicine, Keigo drank deeply from the vial that the woman held to his lips. Her olive skin was in contrast to his own, now extremely pale skin. “You’ve lost a lot of blood. Thank goodness that cats play with their prey; you still have hope, little one.”

Coughing around phlegm in his throat, it felt like bile or blood that was trying to escape. Gagging until it came out, it was in fact, blood “I don’t feel very lucky madam.” He managed to whisper, his chest burning as well as several parts of his body.

“Save your energy, Mother Marisol is here to help you, I’m a medic with the ability to see and sense energy.” She swiped her long dark hair back from her face to reveal bright golden eyes, similar to his own. Tying back her thick and curly locks into a messy bun, Mother Marisol retrieved several tools from a bag that she had at her side. Crouching down next to him, she made sure to keep her gaze fixed on his own for some reason. “My young assistant and child, Touya is going to retrieve you some water, then we’ll see about getting you mended. Can you tell me your name?”

Feeling his teeth begin to chatter, had it suddenly become colder? Keigo couldn’t tell, but it was the only thing that made sense at the moment, “K-Keigo Ta-Taka-mi~.” He stretched out the sound of his own name, and as Marisol tried to keep him talking, it felt hard as she kept sounding further and further away. Was she moving away from him, or was he the one moving? 

“Is he going to die, Mother?” Touya asked, his hands shaking in worry as the boy he’d kicked once more fell unconscious on the ground. Looking to Mother Marisol, her gaze was unreadable, but she nevertheless smiled for him, her optimism infectious.

“No, no niño he’ll be fine if we act quickly. Can you help me close his wounds?” Nodding wildly in agreement, Touya was willing to do what would be required of him. Mother Marisol was a professional physicker, and he would be her dutiful assistant and protector!

“I can do it!” Holding out the waterskin as proof of his proficiency, he’d even heated the water to make sure that it would be clean of any contaminants like Mother Marisol had taught him to do during emergency situations!

Patting his head, Touya smiled widely at how much he was able to help Mother Marisol. Taking the water from his hand, she uncapped the skin and dribbled the contents across the winged boy. Keigo groans in pain, Mother Marisol made sure that the wounds were clean of dirt, before she looked back up at him. “Touya dear, can you cauterize the wounds like I taught you how to do? He’s too unstable for us to move him around like we have with other patients. Remember to control how much fire you use, too much and you’ll hurt him more than you’ll mean to.”

***** Saku’s POV *****

“Dabi helped me heal after the accident using his wild magic. I don’t know why he did what he did, but after that he would come around from time to time.” Shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, but the motion still seemed to cause him some pain, “Whether out of concern or spite, he would show up to mock me, bang me around a bit,” Standing up slowly, each muscle on his body seemed to ripple in a way that made me blush at all of the skin that was in front of me. “Then he would disappear without a trace.”

“He’s definitely something else, has this been what’s been weighing on you?” I couldn’t help but be surprised, it hadn’t crossed my mind that Hawks and Dabi would know each other, much less before becoming a Knight and Villain respectively. But what could have possibly driven both of them into their current roles? Rather than being on the same side? 

Reaching out for his hand, I let Hawks pull me up, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy every moment of it. Especially the way his muscles moved, bunched, and pulled against each other. As I was pulled to my feet next to him, I pulled him into an embrace, after all hugs may not be able to fix everything, but they were definitely a great first step.

“I’m sure it sounds ridiculous, holding out for him to change his ways.” Feeling his arms wrap around me, his head resting on top of my own. Reaching out to stroke his feathers gently, I even reached out with my own wings to envelop his larger ones as best as I could. 

“No, it doesn’t sound ridiculous, _cariño/pajarote_ (big bird/birdie).” Taking a moment to straighten a few of his feathers, I couldn’t help but to recount my own mixed feelings surrounding the ambivalent force that was Dabi. How much did he know about Desca and I, and our situation? “You sound like a caring friend. I would be worried if anything like this happened to Desca, and I know she would feel the same about me. Some friendships define us, and those bonds are _incredibly_ important. If you lose your way, those bonds can bring you back from the brink. Never doubt those feelings, maybe,” Looking up at him from beneath my lashes, I couldn’t help but to smile up at Hawks, “they’ll bring him back around.”

Watching how his brows raised, I pulled Hawks into the early morning sunlight, as the warmth washed against my skin, I could only hope that Hawks felt the same. Even though his mind seemed to be dividing itself in the same way I found myself. Wandering aimlessly down corridors of _what now, what’s next, and how did this all happen?_ Realistically, none of those questions mattered, it would only matter where Desca and I went from here. That would define our futures. 

“Come, dance in the sun with me, pajarote! The way _we’re_ meant to!” Grasping his hand, I used my wings to push off lightly from the ground, just enough for Hawks to break out into a mischievous smile. Daring to tug once more, I waggled my brows in challenge, as Hawks let go of my hand to run ahead of me, his wings spread out to begin his ascent. 

Whipping around, I took a moment to disentangle myself from my armor, until I was down to something that resembled loose shorts, which I wouldn’t have been surprised if they were a feminine under tunic. On top I had a very loose-fitting tunic, but we’d see how long those would last. 

Taking off after Hawks, it seemed birds of a feather _really_ stuck together in this sense. I didn’t see when he’d done it, but he’d managed to put his own armor, clothing, and bag near my own pile, near a small tree that looked like it was a great place to take a rest at. Flapping with gusto to catch up with him, it was interesting to see how even while Hawks had bright red wings, he still managed to be inconspicuous with them as he glided around the area, high enough he wouldn’t be seen with the naked eye from the ground but high enough he could hide in some low lying clouds. 

Occasionally he would spiral inside of a cloud and the shape would change amorphously, sometimes into tendrils, once like a double helix, snakes, a confetti popper gone horribly wrong. 

“Are you planning to play around all day?” I shouted out to him, hoping that he could hear me. I didn’t have to wait very long as he did a few more spins in front of me, before doubling back and eventually gliding underneath me, his feathers twitching to make micro-adjustments as they cut through the air. Lowering myself until there was about a foot of distance between our bodies, it was such a unique experience. Looking at the size difference between the two of us, with our bodies in sync, wings outstretched, the shadow of my body that crossed over his was definitely smaller. 

Where his wings seemed broader to catch the wind, his outstretched primary feathers were slotted to catch different air currents. In comparison my wings looked narrower, nearly triangular like a boomerang, like they were made to cut through the clouds and dive down towards the ground. I knew from my world that hawks are able to travel at high speeds, but in comparison, mine seemed to be built to do something different. I couldn’t help but wonder if I would be able to test out what they could do, how were we going to be different, where wings and sexual tension made us the same? 

Reaching a hand out towards his feathers, a peculiar noise erupted from Hawks. Quirking a brow in interest, I repeated the action, and saw how the feathers twitched around my delving fingers into his covert feathers. Once more the sound seemed to be pulled from Hawks, it was a throaty noise that was a cross between pleasure and agony. Chuckling at the noise, it wasn’t what I had expected, but it made me wonder if the sensation would occur if someone were to touch my feathers. 

Testing my theory, I pulled up from Hawks, pushing with my wings to give us some distance, only to see how Hawks aggressively flipped over, his body facing me, and his wings to the ground below, a feat I wasn’t sure could be performed. Looking to his face an ardent flush was burning across his skin all the way from his torso to his cheeks. 

**** Sexual Content Warning **** (Aerial sex attempt(s))

“Baby bird, you’re dangerous, you know that?” His was a low growl, as he stared up towards me. I would be lying if I said it didn’t make me feel a little guilty, but it was exciting to know that I could get to him. Not unlike the CMV’s Desca and I had done, when _I_ had been the one to portray Hawks, and Desca as _Dabi_. 

A dangerous blush threatened to overcome me at the very thought. It had never occurred to me that this situation would ever occur, much less _in the air!_ It did make me wonder though if Desca had had similar thoughts to the one that was now hitting me like a freight train on the railroad tracks to hell. At the very least I could _definitively_ say that Hawks had more muscles and scars than the body suit had. Which was ridiculous to believe but nevertheless enticing to see. 

Running my gaze over those abs, I licked my lips in anticipation of the meal that was laid out just below me. Brushing down my shirt, I made a point to run my hands over my boobs to accentuate them through the thin material. Meeting his gaze head on, this would definitely be one of the most rewarding challenges I had ever undertaken! Looking down towards his pants, I wonder if his dick was similar to what I had read in some fanfics? 

Jerking my head back up as I realized all too late that he had said something, I went with my gut, which was still struggling to comprehend that an arabis dinch was this world’s equivalent to an arachnid species similar to Aragog. Dis-cos-tang. “Only when I’m around spiders, I’ll have you know!” 

Hearing his chuckle, I turned my gaze back towards his face and couldn’t help but swoon as I saw how all of those taut muscles rippled on him. Each muscle on his chest just seemed to meld and roll into the next one all the way into his arms, which were currently lounging underneath him, supporting his head. Hawks may have been scarred, but it didn’t take away from the fact that he was handsome, in _all_ of the right places. “Otherwise, I’m as harmless as a kitten, pajarote.” 

Seemingly coming closer to me, I didn’t want to question physics at a time like this, until he was directly below me, a shit-eating grin on his face. “Kittens have claws though, Saku and you look like the kind of girl that knows how to use them.” At this point, there were only a few inches between either of our bodies. 

Smiling at the innuendo, I rested a hand on his chest for a moment, and in response, gently ran my nails against his skin, leaving small red lines in my wake. Leaning onto Hawks’ chest, just before kissing his lips, I whispered into his ear, “Well, it’s a good thing this _gatita_ (kitten f.) likes to use those claws then, eh _pajarote_?” 

Closing the rest of the distance between us, our lips came together, slow and tender, just feeling one another. It was only broken up by the occasional gush of wind catching one of us off guard, or one of us eating hair instead of face. Damn unmanageable hair to hell, this was the _fifth_ time I had tried to lean in to give him yet _another_ kiss. Just as I brushed his lips, with a nefarious chuckle Hawks bend just slightly that a gust of wind got caught under my wings once more, blowing me in the opposite direction. 

_It’s go time, cabrón_ (bastard)! 

Fighting back against the wind, I made sure to lock my arms around his neck and flipped us in the air together. As he readjusted both of us, I made sure to let go as another gust of wind came along, using one of my wings to redirect the gust up under Hawks. Although startled, he still managed to rotate in the air, his lyrical laughter following. Rolling my eyes at his antics, he sidled up just below me, now definitively gliding on the wind currents with his back to the ground. Reaching a hand out towards me, I gingerly took his hand in mine and let him pull me on top of him, tucking my wings in so that a gust wouldn’t pull me away again.

It was so easy to become lost in the moment, especially as our gentle kissing was able to continue uninterrupted, _now_. I didn’t even realize how close we had become until I could solidly feel that Hawks was beneath me. Rotating a bit to get more comfortable on my new roost, I froze when I felt his own excitement, _solidly_ against my inner thigh. A gluttonous groan escapes from both of our lips simultaneously, _gods, goddesses, and any other celestial body out there, **thank you** for gracing this man into my life _. 

“Is everything alright there, baby bird?” Wrapping my legs firmly around his hips to feel how _firm_ he was, I couldn’t help but chuckle at the question and leaned down to pepper kisses up his chest up towards his mouth. I only stopped along the way to nibble on his chin, as I discreetly reached down towards his pants, fumbling a few times with the buttons. 

Like a good gentleman, Hawks reached down to lend a _hand_ , at first assisting in unbuttoning his pants, then to reach inside of the under tunic that I was in. His hands gently ran up and down my slit, the sensation foreign, but _definitely_ not unwelcome. Readjusting myself so that the angle wouldn’t be as awkward for either of us to be able to touch one another, I couldn’t help but look into his eyes and see the warmth and love that were in his striking eyes.

“If there could be anything more _right_ ,” I hissed as I felt my voice hitch as Hawks rubbed against my clit in a way that made me wish he would rub _harder_. Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I also wanted him to hold back, so that we could both savor in the moment. 

Paying him a favor right back, I pulled out his cock, holding back a laugh as he hissed, whether in discomfort or pleasure I couldn’t tell as the cold air from a gust of wind ran over the top of his member. “Right now, it would be to win the lottery, and to know how we’re staying in the air right now. Besides that? I could _literally_ be in heaven right now. But we _both_ have some things in the way, pajarote.” It was interesting to note that even in a version of the middle ages, it was good to know that Hawks was a man that favored commando over an under tunic. Accessibility had its own perks. 

Whistling at the convenience of all of this, I made sure to make a mental note that Hawks and I would need to go on _patrol_ more often. Regardless of the number of arabis dinches, leoglets, pangles, and whatever other mystifying animals would appear on whatever we deemed Slick and Semen Rock. 

Feeling the rumbling laughter in his chest first, I pulled back to look down at him, just as his laughter began to come out. “Did you find something that you like, baby bird?” I had the high ground to look down at all of his scarred, visor-less, and bed-headed glory. This is who I was in love with, and had spent countless hours emulating through cosplay and CMV’s. This _man_ would probably bring out the best and worst in me. Unperturbed by my thoughts, it was only made all the more apparent as his laughter came spilling out. Those devilish lips that made me want to scream, for two diametrically opposed reasons. 

Nonchalantly, I made sure to put some more pressure on his dick as I stroked more fervently gaining his attention in a way that made me wish we were on the ground. Sensing my aggression at his laughter, Hawks met me move for move as one of his fingers delved inside, his thumb making _annoyingly_ rhythmic circles on and around my clit. Subconsciously, I tried to refrain from riding his finger to no avail, the contact nice, but not _filling_ enough. 

Looking as innocent as a schoolboy, Hawks looked at me, his face a mixture of saintly and conniving. His wild brows crooked, and lips quirked into a half-smile that promised something more. “Can I help you down _there_?” 

“Baby bird, you can _help_ anywhere you want, but I’ll let you in on a trade secret.” Smirking at the way his eyes held mine, I made sure to gently pull on Pajarito. Getting myself into a rhythm, only to break it up when Hawks was in the middle of speaking, “I may not know what _lottery_ ,” a visible shudder ran through his body. Which seemed like a good idea until his hand jerked inside of me at the same time. Falling forward on him, I looked up to see how he waggled his eyes in response. “- you’re talking about,” he continued hoarsely, “but I can independently move and readjust my feathers, even while upside down to still catch the wind. It’s a trick I found out about a while back on a mission.” 

Getting back into a groove, I couldn’t help but see how Hawks struggled beneath me to keep his composure while talking. Giving a quick peck to his lips in apology, I slowed down so that he could continue, _if_ he needed to continue anyway. 

Changing the pace, I felt more than ready to take him on, but the reality was, Hawks was about as stoutly as they came. Urging him on, Hawks was careful to insert a second finger, for a moment I stopped, the feeling slightly uncomfortable. However, Hawks seemed to know what to do without being told, as he gently continued his gentle ministrations on my clit and began to work his two fingers in and out. The motions slow, but necessary so that I could take _all_ of him with no problem. 

It was slow going, but eventually we worked our way back into another rhythm, somewhere between controlled precision and wildly enthusiastic. Running my thumb over the tip of his cock to spread around some of the precum to act as a lubricant, I stopped once more as I heard Hawks’ groan of contentment. Looking to catch his gaze, I gave a smirk, happy that the wind was blowing my hair off of my face this time.

“We - We could try to practice it with yours, sometime.” He groaned once more as I decided that the under tunic wasn’t doing me any favors, as he spoke, I managed to wiggle out of the loose shorts, without having Hawks remove his hand. Dropping them from wherever we were at this point in the endlessly blue sky, they fell like they were on a mission to divebomb some poor animal or person in need. If anything, I had more back at camp in my bag, so this wouldn’t be a loss. Looking back to Hawks, I nonchalantly adjusted my position until I was just on top of the tip, his hiss of pleasure drawing my eyes up towards his own. “Your feathers look like they hold together as a unit and your daggers are in the coverts, _dammit_ , Saku.” He dropped his head back below his wings in defeat. Reaching out with my wings, I made sure to keep them parallel to Hawks’ so that neither of us would be ripped from the other unexpectedly. I even went so far as to angle my wings like a cocoon over the top of us, to minimize any catastrophes that could possibly occur.

Waiting until he looked back up, I felt weak in the knees at the hunger I saw in his eyes, those golden eyes holding me in place as my chest heaved. Leaning down once more to capture his lips in a kiss, his other hand, which at this point had been running along my chest, breasts and butt, was now firmly cupping my face. 

“If we go through with this, what’ll come next?” He said softly, my form still waiting in anticipation, even while his fingers continued to stretch and stroke inside of me. The pressure firm, pleasurable, and filling, but not in the way that would satiate me, or my growing hunger to feel _everything_. 

“Who knows?” Softly, and slowly, I worked my body up and down on his hand, more than ready to face the real thing. Looking Hawks in the eye, I knew part of the deeper question that he was alluding to, but I don’t think anyone had the answer for that. Now right now at least. “But I refuse to not fight for it, or to fight for _us_. I want you, and you want me, and that’s all that matters right now, right? So let go, and show me everything that you are.” Taking my hand off of his cock, I wiped some of the precum off onto my tunic and ran my hand up and down his chest gently. All I wanted was to lose myself to pleasure, and I especially wanted it to come from this man, but I wanted to prove that I could give him just as much pleasure, as he was giving me. “I want to see every facet of you, the good, and the bad.” 

“I won’t be able to hold back, once we start.”

“I’d be offended if you did.” Taking his hand into my own, I held his hand to my chest, so that he could feel my heartbeat racing; putting my own hand on his chest, it felt like they were beating in time to one another. Seeing the green light go off in his eyes, a gluttonous smirk crossed his features once more, and without warning, his hands were on my waist, pulling me down onto his erection. I felt my head reel at the sensation that I had missed, especially as it slid right in. Gods, how long had it been since I’d last felt _this_ full. 

There were sounds coming from my mouth that I couldn’t describe but ultimately, I didn’t think too long on it as Hawks seemed to be making similar noises. Riding him nice and slow, I wanted to know that I was giving him as much pleasure as this felt. It felt so large and fit so snuggly inside of me; like a glove. 

Gasping, I felt my breath hitch as I managed to hit a spot inside of me just right, I swore I saw literal stars for a moment as my toes curled without warning, my nails digging into the firm skin below me. With a growl, that sounded more feral and wild than human, I looked down into those _hungry_ golden eyes just as Hawks licked his upper lip. The look on his face, inherently sinister. 

“Hold on, baby bird, I’m gonna have to change the pace for both of our sakes.” With that he took control and flipped us over until he was the one on top, supporting both of us in the air. _Lordy, this **man**_. I couldn’t help but gasp and my wings automatically tucking in; I didn’t want to try flipping my feathers like Hawks had described. 

Reaching for his lips, I felt my fingers automatically reach out for his hair, to become entangled in the windblown locks as our lips played, teased, nibbled and laughed at the absurdity of all of this chaos. His body set the pace as he somehow managed to snap his hips as though he wasn’t standing in midair, almost like a literal angel.

“Ángel rojo, you are just _full_ of surprises now, aren’t you?” I purred out as Hawks set the pace. Settling my hips into a higher position, the new angle allowed Hawks to have deeper access and caused goosebumps to suddenly break out across my skin. Before long our bodies began to move in sync as a pressure began to build slowly in my stomach. Without the support of the ground it probably would have given me more reason to try switching things up. However, I couldn’t help but to be impressed by the feat that was being performed right now. Who knew that I would be joining the Mile High Club like this, much less without a plane?

Besides being pushed and pulled by the winds in the sky and our bodies as we met each other; motion for motion. I had my legs wrapped around Hawks’ hips, trying in vain to keep him closer and yet wanting him even closer. Every now and then I took a moment to practice some kegels, just to see if it would still have the same effect. If Hawks’ groaning and the throbbing that I felt inside of me were anything to go off of, I still had it! 

As we continued with wild abandon at this point, not bother to conceal any grunts, groans, and the occasional _yelp_ of confusion as _something_ would hit the right or wrong spot. I felt that building pressure inside of me begin to pulse steadily. 

Driven by a need to have Hawks close to me, I couldn’t describe the prickling sensation that had begun to crawl across my skin, starting from where Hawks and I were connected and spreading outwards. It was a strange sensation, like an overwhelming _need_ , a need to consume and yet a need to share, a dichotomy I couldn’t begin to describe and yet understood intrinsically. 

As though trying in vain to appease the sensation, I reached out towards Hawks’ neck to pull him close to kiss. It was then that I realized that Hawks had moved some of his feathers beneath my body and himself to hold us steady in the air, the telekinetically controlled feathers working as platforms. It seemed all too late to have come to this conclusion but it made sense for how Hawks had managed to gain as much purchase and stability as he had. 

Gasping as he began to move faster, a deep-seated growl seeming to pull itself from my throat and for a moment I couldn’t believe that the sound was coming from me. Kissing Hawks’ lips harshly, at some point I could taste blood on my tongue but I didn’t care from which one of us it was coming from. I was a dangerous force, in and outside of the bedroom and one’s odds of being bitten by me were low _but never zero_. 

“Say my name,” I heard Hawks whisper into my ear, his voice low and hoarse and surprisingly similar to the sounds that I was making myself. 

“Ha --” 

“No, my _real_ name, Saku.” That growl made my body tingle in a familiar way that told me we were probably both on the brink of spilling over the edge and coming back down to earth. Having sex in the air this, was surreal. 

With a few more forceful and fast thrusts, I felt his name being wrung from my body as I screamed out, “Keigo!” A similar sound exploded from him but I felt so lost to the sensation as my body was wracked in the throes of coming so hard. It felt like my world had gone dark temporarily, as my body felt like it was convulsing. For a moment the world around me was dark and the only sound that I could hear was my own racing heartbeat as everything else became silent. 

**** Smut Scene Done ****

However, a terrifying feeling overcame all of these mutable sensations, when it felt like my stomach was suddenly in my throat. Snapping my eyes open, nothing initially made sense as the world around me seemed to move in slow motion; whether looking through water, or a bowl of Jell-O. 

Looking towards my wings, I couldn’t find enough air in my lungs to scream, even while I could feel and hear the wind screaming by my ears. Whereas my orgasm had come to a close, it looked like my wings were still in the reverberating throes of passion and despair. Both of my wings were snapping in and out without rhyme nor reason. They seemed to jerk and twitch as though electricity was being run through them, like something beyond me was controlling them and all I could do was stare in horror; my lips were moving but the sound wouldn’t come out. 

I felt more than saw that I was falling, especially as I could hear my name being screamed from above me, but the sound was painful and _so_ far away. Had I somehow cut Keigo? Had something knocked into us? I couldn’t grasp onto any of my thoughts, much less the reasons that had led to this moment. 

Gasping to try to gain control over my body, all I could do was spin helplessly in the air as my wings refused to realign, anytime I tried to take control of the proverbial wheel, they would just flap helplessly and then continue to jerk. Something was wrong, but I didn’t have enough energy to take control of the situation. _‘Move! Damn it, move!’_

Daring to look down towards the ground, where pleasure had once resided; a sickening sense of despair was not taking its place. Trees that had looked like pinpricks before were now starting to take on more definitive shape, lakes that had looked like drops of water, were now the equivalent of a glaringly angry ocean; prepared to swallow me whole if I landed on anything wrong. Although at this point, was there even a _right_ way to land on something from this height? 

If there was one thing to take solace in, it was that the small tree that I had left my armor at earlier and even from above; still looked like a good place to rest in the shade. 

Covering my face for the inevitable impact that was coming. I could only pray that it would be a quick ending. 

I didn’t have long to pray however, as I seemingly stopped in midair; the ground below me is still a few hundred yards away. However, as I felt below me it was as though the air itself was supporting me from continuing my fall. A few moments later, arms enclosed around my waist and the strange invisible force that had held me up, seemingly disappeared. And instead of falling like a stone, I was now moving down at a more controlled descent. 

Grasping onto the arms that were holding onto me tightly, I felt my nails dig into Keigo’s tanned skin. The scent of feathers and leather fills my senses; admittedly it was a scent that I hadn’t noticed until this point. However, I couldn’t complain as it told me just how close Keigo was holding onto me, like he too had believed I was going to crash into the ground. His hold was tight enough to keep me supported against his chest, even while my wings still managed to twitch, the erratic motions now significantly subdued. I couldn’t imagine the pain Keigo was probably feeling. Even though the daggers were hidden within my covert feathers, it didn’t make any of the other feathers any less sharp.

Whether through exhaustion or because our recent sexcapade, I think I could mark this off of my bucket list of things I didn’t think I would ever be able to do, and things that I would never do twice. I felt awful, as my clawed grip didn’t relent until we touched down on the ground, and even then, we both fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes; breaths gasping, and hearts racing. There may have even been a little blood seeping from the frenzy we had both just finished. 

“I don’t think we should do that again.” I said softly, testing to see if I could control my wings even slightly. With the gracefulness that I had come to know, both wings and all of the feathers reacted as though we _hadn’t_ just almost died. Rolling over onto my stomach, I didn’t even care if the tunic got dirty at this point, the ground below me a beautiful, bountiful, and merciful creature. “I’ll even pay for a bed if that would help.”

Chuckling softly, Keigo reached over so that he could run his fingers through my hair softly. “Same, I’m just glad that I was able to catch you. But I swear, right before you fell, something stabbed me, it was the weirdest thing.” Rubbing his lower back, maybe I had stabbed him after all? 

“Leoglets?” Looking over towards Keigo, he just gave a simple thumbs up in response, _lovely_. “Just _fucking_ great . Do we have to fight those off now?” 

Chuckling, I noticed how Keigo made a point to pull in his vibrantly red feathers until they were out of the line of sight of the felines that were yowling from the trees, the sound echoing through the trees like a harsh wail. “Luckily, no. Leoglets are very territorial, especially when they have to feed their young. However, they won’t come after prey that looks dead. They probably heard us and thought that we were on the verge of dying. Easy prey to bring for their young. They won’t bother us if we lay here until they leave. We’ll just have to go the long way back to camp.” 

So for a while we just laid on the ground like that, hands outstretched to one another, until the big cats eventually got bored and left for what Keigo had called a maroose dog. At this point, anything that didn’t sound like it came from my world sounded like something that needed to be avoided.

Eventually when we did get up and dust ourselves off, Keigo pulled his armor out from beneath the small tree that we had managed to hide beneath. Just as I was about to start re-strapping my armor back on, I couldn’t help but to chuckle as my under tunic managed to land on one of the lower hanging branches. Could these be considered lucky underwear now? After we had gathered everything up, Keigo and I went back towards the camp, our fingers intertwined as we traversed back through the forest. 

****Dabi’s Tower****

Readjusting his vials of arabis dinch venom in the cabinet, Dabi was more than content to organize his collection of miscellaneous ingredients, vials and herbs. It was a soothing activity that allowed him to put things into perspective. That is, it was cathartic until Toga danced into the room, performing a few spins as she traversed across the floor; until she flopped onto the couch. Her maniacal giggling causing Dabi to stop what he was doing to turn and look at his partner-in-crime.

“They should be here soon!” She stated excitedly, a small dagger in-between her fingers. Slashing it into the air a few times, Toga mimicked her latest kill before she twirled the dagger with professional ease, the blade a whirling blur. 

Closing the cabinet, and locking it for good measure. The last time Toga had gotten into his stuff, she’d turned green and been bedridden for the better part of a month. _That_ was an experience Dabi didn’t want to repeat anytime soon. “About damn time,” giving Toga a sly grin, he moved over to the chair that sat near Toga. Near enough for conversation, far enough he couldn’t be _accidentally_ stabbed, _again_. “Is Stain nearby as well?” 

Wrinkling her nose for a moment, she frantically nodded her head, the buns on her head threatening to come unraveled from the action. “Yeah, he’s outside doing some kind of training. Wanted to practice, ‘gutting the bitch’.” She air quoted as she kicked her feet back and forth impatiently. 

“Are you really that surprised?” Straightening his coat, he realized it was all in vain as it would just become wrinkled soon enough, “Desca Thrush may have been a thorn in my side, but she’s been getting under Stain’s skin in the worst way possible. But that’s not why _you’re_ here is it, Toga?” Steepling his fingers together, he gave Toga his undivided attention, “Tell me, how are you doing Toga? You’ve seemed on edge lately, are you sure you have everything ready?” Leaning back to readjust his angle towards Toga, Dabi swung his left leg over the arm of the chair, leisurely looking over to Toga, who now seemed enraptured by the prospect before her.

“Do you even have to ask?” She gave him a wide fanged smile that would chill the hearts of a weak man, and ignite the passions of an insane one. “I have Maya’s blood ready! I even managed to pick up a few _surprises_!” Her eyes narrowed devilishly, even while her smile remained unperturbed. “I have a plan so _foolproof_ and fun, that I just _know_ Maya will join us!” Well, Dabi would have to give her credit at least, her enthusiasm was something to behold, especially when she put her mind to something. 

Nodding, Dabi pursed his lips, a tic forming in his jaw, “Remember, Toga, there’s a reason _why_ we need to meet them head on. We have to keep Saku and Desca _alive_ ,” he growled at Toga, who recoiled at the tone. Taking a deep breath, it wouldn’t do him any good to get riled up, it wasn’t Desca’s fault that Toga had fallen for Maya, just a matter of unfortunate circumstances. “The rest are yours to do as you see fit, _understand_?” 

Rolling her eyes, Toga huffed but nevertheless nodded her head in understanding, her yellow eyes now fixated on the blade still in her hand. “Can I at _least_ rough them up a little?” 

“Well, _I_ for one, sure hope we can.” Lifting his gaze to the doorway, Dabi was _almost_ surprised to find Shigaraki standing there. His flair for drama was the same as ever, although he looked to have grown up from the last time they’d run into one another. Nothing major, maybe an inch, and his hand fetish collection had dropped from the dozen hands that he used to have attached to his body. Like macabre jewelry, it _almost_ looked reasonable now. “From what I hear, those two _little girls_ have been keeping your hands full, Dabi. Have you gone soft?” 

Walking into the room, he scratched his neck, which was still riddled with an eczema that Dabi hadn’t been able to cure on the pale-skinned man. From head to toe the man was donned in black leather and cotton, like his last cheap date. _Cute_. Leather pants ran along his skinny ass, to a complementary black cotton shirt that was held up with a leather vest and accentuated with leather gloves. Whether it was to convince people he was a necromancer or not was another tale entirely. 

“Welcome back, Shigaraki, I’m guessing Twice isn’t too far behind you? After all, I’m sure Lord Stain caught you both down in the courtyard. What do you think of the plan?” Darting his eyes around the room, Shigaraki’s eyes were hard to read, especially as the man chronically seemed to have to scratch at his neck that was already covered in a myriad of scar tissue. Shigaraki would have made for an intimidating sight, if he wasn’t such a pain in the ass. They had worked together before, but it hadn’t exactly been willingly for either party. 

Moving into the room, Shigaraki took a seat in the chair opposite to Dabi’s own, a hand instinctively staying at his neck. What hands were left on his body seemed to move slightly the more he became comfortable in his seat. 

“All I know, _Dabi_ , is that you have a ritual planned. Something about _saving_ the world, right?” Shifting in the seat uncomfortably, although he probably wouldn’t show it, Dabi knew from experience the hero-boner/inferiority-complex that dominated Shigaraki’s world. Any mention of the world in a positive or negative sense would bring the man running to be a part of the action. 

Dropping his leg from the arm of the chair, Dabi turned to face Shigaraki directly, and leaned forward, just so the man would know that he was _actually_ paying attention to him. “In a way, yes. Our world has become a bit _unstable_. To fix it, we need two keys that can rectify what’s been happening here. Recently, those two keys finally became available in our world.” Watching Shigaraki, the man’s mass of blue hair seemed to silently shake, as his beady eyes took in the information, his various hands, attached or otherwise shaking in sadistic glee. “As such, we need to group up and be prepared. Soon, those keys will be ours, and we can complete the ritual that will save us.” 

Of course Dabi left out crucial parts, most many didn’t know but he wasn’t going to divulge everything to his _allies_ ; that would be counterproductive at best, a roaring shitstorm that was on fire, at worst. Leaning towards Shigaraki, he made sure to have the man’s full attention, “So, where’re your better halves? I expected them to be right at your side, since you never travel alone these days.” Cocking his head to the side, Shigaraki began to scratch his neck again; at this point it could have been habit, a nervous tic, a sign that something hadn’t gone according to his plan. 

The blue-haired man scratched at his neck incessantly. Smirking, Dabi realized what had happened as both Shigaraki’s companions were detained at the door. “They were detained at the door; they only allowed me inside. They seemed very wary of all three of us being together for _some_ reason.” Shigaraki snapped, his eyes staring intensely at Dabi, who only shrugged innocently. 

Bouncing up from her spot on the couch, Toga spoke up, her excitement palpable, “I’ll get them!” Dashing out of the room, Shigaraki simply followed her with his intense gaze. 

“For some reason, I forgot how excitable she can get . . .” Chuckling at how fortunate it was, Dabi could only pray for the day that the girl wasn’t worming her way up to him, a needle or dagger in hand as she tried to make him bleed, or make him hand over something that she wanted access to. “Hey! I’m not around her as much as you are!” 

Putting his hands up to wave off Shigaraki before he could start on a tirade, Dabi got up from his spot. “She’s excitable but useful, especially when it comes to our two targets, and anything dealing with _love_.” Dabi said condescendingly. After all, Toga would run headfirst into danger for blood, or for love, and both were practically interchangeable. Walking to the window that overlooked the forest around the castle, Dabi found his gaze being drawn towards the clearing from the day before. “Soon enough, we can destroy this system that has broken down thousands and kept us _villains_ under their thumb. We’ll create a new world, one where we can be on equal footing with others. One that will bring magick users back from the brink of extinction. To put us back where we _belong_. What do you say, Shigaraki?” Slamming his fist on the windowsill, Dabi found himself wincing at the action that had pulled a staple from his skin, a small trickle of blood landing on the stonework below. 

Picking up the detached staple, Dabi flicked it away and cursed, _‘damn it, I don’t have any extra at the moment, fucking sold the scrap metal a week ago.’_ Had he had the time to think that through, he would have kept some for an emergency like this. 

As a skipping noise rang through the room from the stairwell, Dabi turned just as Toga came into the room, Twice and Kurogiri in tow. “Dabi! Here are the two the thugs held at the door! They were trying to get a power trip!” Exclaiming, she held up two vials filled to the brim with blood, her voice giddy and her eyes malicious, “But not anymore!” Tucking the vials into her robes, she returned to her perch on the couch, and began humming a tune that Dabi couldn’t guess at. 

Looking to Twice and Kurogiri, it had been so long since Dabi had last been around Shigaraki, it had never occurred to him that the man would acquisition new help. Giving Toga an appraising smile, a little reassurance and praise could go a long way to keeping the girl in his graces. 

“Tell me you didn’t kill them?” Shaking her head, Dabi sighed in relief. It was bad enough trying to find _willing_ thugs, much less ones with useful powers around. Rubbing his temple to relieve the migraine that was starting to build, how much would this cut into the hazard pay? After all, he didn’t have an infinite supply of men that he could just pull from. After a scout had infiltrated the group last time, everything now required a _thorough_ look through. “Welcome, we were just talking about you two.” Moving away from the window, Dabi kept the pressure on his wrist, where the staple had been pulled from. Sitting back down on his chair, Dabi tried to keep the injury discreetly hidden. 

Noticing the injury, Toga bounced once more from her seat and came to Dabi’s side, her gaze fixated on the injury. “Dabi! Why are you missing a staple?!” From her pocket she retrieved a small metal object. Wiping it down, she grabbed his wrist and without warning began to anchor the piece of metal. Ignoring Dabi’s grunt, Toga began digging it into the section of burnt and unburnt skin that required mending. “There! Don’t lose it this time!” Walking back to the couch she flopped back down, her mission complete. Although, it made him wonder if she had been the one going through his stash of staples. 

As though in collective disbelief, everyone looked at one another as though to verify at what they had just seen. If it had actually taken place so nonchalantly, like making a pot of coffee, or cursing someone with an incurable disease. Maintaining his cool, Dabi looked at them all, “What? This isn’t the first time she’s done this.” Flexing his hand, Dabi smiled at the fact that the staple wasn’t moving. So, Toga _had_ been paying attention when he’d taught her first aid procedures. _Good_. “Now then, back to the plan at hand.” 

****Somewhere just south of the Camp****

“So you two really are just best friends?” Maya asked as she bumped her shoulder into the slightly taller woman’s. Nodding her head in agreement, at this point it really had been all a big misunderstanding. 

“Saku and I are the best of friends, we’re close but not like some may think. We still have to tell people that we are _just_ friends, ‘cause everyone sees how we cuddle and are all over each other.” Desca ran a hand through her hair as she began to move towards a tree, leisurely beginning to lean her back against it. 

“It must be pretty cool to have a friend like that.” Blushing in embarrassment, Maya glanced towards the taller woman, “I guess me being jealous is pretty dumb, huh?” She asked as she began to step closer to Desca, all the while rubbing the back of her neck and looking down at the ground. 

Shaking her head in disagreement, Desca smiled and shifted on the tree. “Not dumb. I get how you can get jealous of a friendship, _especially_ when it looks like there’s something more, but you don’t have anything to worry about. At least where Saku is concerned.” Reaching out and Desca grasped Maya’s hand and gave it a squeeze of reassurance. 

Looking up, Maya could only give a small smile “Sorry if it was so obvious.” Stepping closer to Desca, she reached up to move some hair from the bard’s eyes and smiled warmly. “You really do have some gorgeous eyes.” Looking into those blue pools, Maya licked her bottom lip, as her eyes darted between Desca’s eyes and her lips, smiling internally when the bard reciprocated the action. 

Reaching out with her hand, Desca grasped the Knight’s upper arm and pulled her close. “Ya know, we should be looking for Dabi’s hideout…” Trailing off, Desca pulled Maya the little distance that was left in between the two of them and began to kiss her. 

Instinctively, Maya pressed back and without warning hands moved to rest on the tree right behind the bard, blocking her in. Both women quickly came to become lost in the moment as lips moved together, Maya pulling back for just a second, “I think Dabi can wait a couple minutes, don’t ya think?” She asked and then leaned up towards the bard, pressing her lips to Desca’s again; not really expecting an answer. 

After a few minutes a rustling noise seemed to emanate nearby. Both breaking the kiss to turn towards the direction of the sound and what was creating it. Looking towards Maya’s left, they turned just in time to see a figure running through the trees. 

“Who the hell . . . ?” Maya looked up towards Desca questioningly, response the bard simply shrugged in confusion. 

“We should head back to camp, now.” Taking a step back from Desca, Maya turned away, intent on going back to camp, a smile on her face at the knowledge that everything up to this point had all been a misunderstanding. As Desca pushed off from the tree, Maya couldn’t help but smile and appreciate the view, even while they began to race against one another, back towards their campsite. 

Every so often they both would see the same figure running; it was as if the person was matching them? Whether it was in speed, or running length, it eerily mimicked them perfectly as they bounded through the forest floor. “We need to get there quick, I dunno what’s going on!” Maya yelled over towards the bard who was starting to get ahead of her, her long legs taking her further than Maya’s could. But the view was great in the meantime. 

Although it took a couple minutes, both Desca and Maya practically came to a skidding halt at the outer opening of the campsite. Although not out of breath, both still felt winded from the run, the air thick and heavy on the forest floor. 

Shoto was looking off to the northside of the camp, his eyes trained on the treeline as they looked around. At first glance, nothing looked to be out of place, yet there was definitely something that felt off. 

“Shoto!” Desca shouted, pulling his attention from the treeline to look over his shoulder towards the two of them. Jerking his head, he motioned for them to come over to him. Sprinting over, they both took a moment to flank Shoto; Desca on the right and Maya on the left. 

“Someone’s here, I don’t know who though. Do either of you know where Saku and Hawks are?” 

Before either Knight could answer, Saku and Hawks came sliding in behind them a few moments later. Both of their wings spread out. As though they had just come in from a hard landing, Hawks had even managed to get some twigs snagged in his hair, while Saku’s looked windblown and battle-ready. 

Plucking the twigs from his hair, Hawks gave a smirk, even while his eyes seemed hard and focused on the treeline in front of them. “So, what did we miss?” Saku remained close behind, brushing her hair off to the side. Something must have been amiss as both of their wings were fluffing out, like they were both psyching themselves up for a fight. 

Shoto looked over at the two and their slightly disheveled looks and shook his head. “Not sure, but it’s not good.” 

**** Saku’s POV ****

We had rushed back after the leoglets had taken off. However, the moment we’d entered the forest, strange noises had trailed after us, something that was neither human nor animal. Without thinking, Hawks and I had both broken out into a dead sprint until the trees had opened enough to let us through; from there we had dive bombed through the trees back towards the ground near the camp. 

It seemed like that was the right move to make as our entire group was now standing in the camp clearing, looking towards the northernmost part of the forest. It was eerie, all of this watching and waiting, yet none of us could get the feeling of unease to dissipate. There was no guarantee that something may or may not come out from the treeline, but something didn’t seem right. 

“Does anyone else hear or see anything weird?” I couldn’t help but ask as I began to spread my wings out, my hands reaching towards my coverts for the feather daggers, just in case we needed to act quickly. 

Desca turned to me, her face contemplative, yet unsure, “We saw someone running through the woods but couldn’t figure out who. They even kept pace with us as we ran back here…” she trailed off as a twig was heard snapping just inside the treeline.

In unison, everyone’s head snapped back towards the northernmost treeline and we all watched with bated breath. I could feel Keigo next to me become stiffer as figures began to emerge from the trees and I couldn’t help but to groan inwardly. _‘why are they coming here now. Wait, is that...Stain! Wait...Twice...Shigaraki and oh, fuck! Kurogiri too!’_ I honestly hadn’t expected the last few to be here. Finally, like he was the ringleader of the whole operation, Dabi emerged with his signature macabre and chaotic smile, the skull motif on his face more prominent than usual today. 

The five of us stood in defensive positions, Desca moving slightly behind everyone and Maya coming to stand more to my right. I noticed Hawks moving forward to stand with Shoto and I stayed in between; might as well, who knows what may happen. 

About fifteen yards away from us, Dabi was standing in the center with Shigaraki and Stain flanking him, while Twice was slightly back behind Stain and Kurogiri was back behind Shigaraki. _‘Great, a standoff, what the hell do they want?!’_ I wondered to myself, as I moved a hand back into my wings. I wanted to _really_ be prepared. 

Stepping forward, still grinning like a fool, Dabi made a tsking noise as he looked between our group. “Did we come at a bad time, kiddos?” He managed to keep his tone jovial, but his eyes were cold and evaluated each of us like one would an insect. 

**TBC**


	7. Secrets Revealed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Will the standoff turn into something more? What secrets will be revealed and who is the mysterious figure that has not shown themselves?

The tension hung in the air between them, no one daring to make the first move. Looking at Dabi, a sinking feeling overcame me as I saw him smiling at us, the look delightfully macabre. The old adage might be that a silent man is a thinking man, and if that were the case, what in the world would it entail if the silent man was smiling; with an entourage of psychopaths in his wake? Nothing good from the way it looked; especially as the other villains hovered around him and slowly began to spread out, eyeing their prey with an eagerness not unlike the leoglets earlier. 

Whether anyone realized it, we were each finding ourselves staring down our opponent. Keeping myself from staring any one villain down, I chanced a glance over at Desca and noticed how she had a hand behind her; ready to pull out her ukulele at a moment’s notice. Watching how she crouched slightly, I noticed her other hand was resting casually, yet meaningfully on her thigh. _‘Are there weapons there too?’_ I couldn’t help but wonder to myself as I tried to find where on her outfit she kept other things hidden, amongst the folds and fabric, it would certainly be possible. _‘Nice, Desca!’_

Looking to the others, I saw how Maya kept her hand readied on the pommel of her longsword that was attached to her hip. Desca had told me how easily it was for Maya to draw the weapon, that I didn’t worry about whether she could hold her own or not. Even Hawks had practiced with her and could attest to the speed with which she could draw the blade, the motion imperceptible to the untrained eye.

With such a blasé attitude to the situation at hand, you would think Maya just regularly goes out into the woods to fight villains like it was a daily chore that she needed to mark off of her to-do list. Maybe there was something to the fact that the villains were a bigger threat in this world than they would ever be in my own. On Earth, the only thing I’d had to fear before were taxes, international quarantine policies, politics, homophobes, and neo-Nazi megalomaniacs. 

_’It would be helpful if my only opponents in this world hadn’t been Hawks, Desca 2.0, some thugs, a big ass spider, and gravity!’_ In comparison to everyone else, I was definitely feeling like I was the weakest link in the group, experience-wise. _‘Ugh! I wish I had done more with the time that I had here!’_

At my side, Keigo had his wings stretched out behind him, in each of his hands was a long primary feather. Looking to his face, I could see the hard line in his jaw was set, his eyes focused on the task at hand. Hell, even the _wind_ was on his side as it blew his hair out of his face, and emphasized his statuesque façade; it wouldn’t be hard to believe if Keigo had been cut from stone, like a statue depicting a god about to go to war. 

_‘Focus Saku! Damn it, the blood needs to go to my brain, nowhere else!’_ Snapping myself out of the thought, I found myself turning towards Shoto, who had taken a step backwards, his movements slow, until he was standing next to me. Maya moved closer to defend Desca, or to offer her time to activate her quirk should the fight start sooner than expected. 

“Saku,” bringing my attention back to Shoto, his gaze was off to the left side of the villains’ group, “do you see a figure? Just beyond the trees, to the left of Dabi’s group?” He whispered to me; following his line of sight, sure enough, a figure was hiding just behind a tree and their shadow looking like an amorphous lump. Squinting just be certain, it didn’t seem possible; it was like seeing double, as the shadow from the tree seemed reminiscent of something that I couldn’t put my finger on. 

“Qué demonios (What the hell)?” Scanning the periphery of the opposing group, did they have others hiding amongst the trees? Going back towards the tree that Shoto had indicated, the figure had disappeared before I could get a better look at them. “Well, they’re definitely not with us.” 

Nodding in agreement, Shoto’s gaze returned to Dabi and his group. Spinning my daggers lackadaisically, I couldn’t help but cock my head slightly, as Dabi began stepping forward, separating himself from the group; Keigo mirroring the action, step for step. Dabi’s face, one of boisterously murderous intent; where Keigo’s was one of resolute determination. Two forces of nature diametrically opposed, yet constantly forced together. 

They each took a few more steps, until only a few yards separated them but the tension could be felt even from here.

“I see even you’ve fallen to working with _those_ kinds of thugs, Dabi.” Keigo’s voice was a dangerous growl that made shivers run through my body in the worst way. _‘Dammit Saku, this is definitely not the time for this!’_

With a flippant chuckle, Dabi seemed completely at ease with the situation occurring right now. Holding up his hands he made a tsking noise while he waggled his fingers back and forth. “No no Hawks, I’m not here for _you_ , maybe another time? I’m here for Saku,” his eyes cut across to me and I felt my body stiffen in response, “but you already knew that, didn’t you, Hawks?” A nimble tongue swiped at his lips, a glint of metal catching the sunlight that filtered through the trees. 

Locking eyes with Dabi, another shiver went through my body, _‘what the actual fuck?! Dabi and Pajarote . . . fuck me . . . just, you both suck!’_ It felt so hard to be impartial when they were both standing there, and every dirty fanfic came to mind, every salacious CMV, every _everything._

_‘Perdóname Padre, porque estoy pecando sin arrepentimiento (Forgive me, Father, for I am sinning without regret). Why Dabi, just why do you have to be the bad guy? Dios mio (My God), I’m with Keigo for fucks sake!’_

Tightening my jaw at my thoughts, before I could think of anything else, PG to Explicit, I felt a hand on my arm. Looking down, I saw Desca’s gloved hand gripping my arm, her body physically now in front of me. Even Maya and Shoto had adjusted themselves to the new formation. No one daring to move any further until a low growling noise began to emanate from Stain, his eyes locked onto Desca. 

“That bitch . . .” There was hardly time to react as Stain burst from the villains’ group, the fight initiating. Villains and heroes entered the fray, or at least Shoto threw up a wall of ice to try to create a short of bottlenecking effect. Which in any other situation would have worked, had Stain not been prepared to run Desca to the ground. 

As though she understood the bizarre fixation that Stain had with her, Desca had sprinted towards the trees closed to us, her ukulele out, and eyes scanning the villains in the vicinity that she could target. Maya close on her heels, followed by Stain who seemed solely focused on the bard. 

Surveying the area, I managed to see Keigo launching himself at Dabi; who spun away from the attack and began to lead Keigo into the trees directly behind him. Whether to put an end to Keigo or to remove him from the fight; it didn’t immediately seem clear. However it would go, from my understanding, neither one of them would have the ability to truly kill the other or so I would have to hope. 

Spinning in a tight circle, I instinctively lunged towards Stain and launched to two purple feather daggers that I had prepared in advance. Throwing towards the villain’s back, Stain stopped and in a tight turn of his own used his swords to deflect the attack away from himself.

Sneering, he jerked as though he was going to go after Desca again but I threw one more dagger; that he flicked away once more with ease. Coming towards me, his grin was sinister, “Don’t try to be the hero, _little girl._ The only reason you live, is because that cursed child needs you alive. I don’t need you, or that little _bitch_ for anything.” 

Holding my ground, I readied two more daggers from my coverts and set myself up in a boxer’s stance. “You’ll have to get through me to get to her!” Tightening my grip around the daggers, I tried putting as much venom into my voice as I could muster. Even if the reality was, this wouldn’t be a good matchup. 

Looking towards Desca’s location, what in the world had she done to Stain of all people to warrant the fixation that he had? 

Before I could react, Stain was already on the move; his movements a blur. I was barely able to keep up as he swiped at me with his katana. Rolling forward underneath his sword slash, I tried to stay either just out of reach of the blade but close enough that I could try to land a few blows of my own; but it was all to no avail. Every time I would try to swipe his feet out from under him, Stain would step just out of range and would come back with a swipe of his blade. Every dagger that was thrown was deflected with an ease that made it seem like he wasn’t taking any of this seriously. 

Gritting my teeth at the exertion, I saw his blade come in from the side, like he was just going to side swipe me out of the way. Holding my ground, I used my feather daggers to hold the blade in place. Wincing, I refused to move, even as the weight of the blow rippled throughout my body, and my arms nearly buckled underneath the strain. With a smile on Stain’s face, this wasn’t what he had expected; for someone to be able to hold their own with him. But as he continued to put weight onto his blade, I knew that this would no longer be a fight of speed but wills. The will to protect and the will to kill. 

His eyes narrowed as he looked at my daggers and with the speed he’d built up through slaughtering others and the force to shatter bodies; Stain pulled back, a sadistic smile on his face. I just barely had time to react as his arm came forward, the sword only a glint of light in the midday sun.

Ducking at the last moment, I felt the air above me as the sword passed by and my heart fell into my stomach as I scrambled to roll to the side. Pain bursting from my left arm and a _tink,_ sounding from my wings. Daring a glance, a dagger was stuck amongst the metal feathers; blood coating the blade from where it had nicked my arm. 

_‘Shit! That’s way too close for comfort . . .’_ Using my wings to push back and away from Stain; I tried to manipulate the feathers to hold the dagger in place. If he licked the blood from it, it was going to be game over. 

Sprinting from my spot, a moment later a _thump_ slams the ground, and in its place is yet another dagger. _‘Guess we’re playing darts now, dammit!’_ Narrowly dodging around another dagger, I throw one of my daggers in Stain’s direction; hoping to distract him for a moment so that I can get in close enough to disarm him at this point.

Coming at him from the back, I toss a dagger towards his foot; in the hopes of catching him off guard. No dice, Stain simply let the blade pin his foot to the ground and using it like a pivot point, turns; the blade outstretched towards my throat. Sliding beneath the blade, just as I cross beneath, I manage to throw two more daggers towards Stain, one aimed at his thigh, the other his smug fucking face. 

With a snap of his wrist, Stain managed to deflect the dagger coming towards his face; with his dagger hand. _‘Bullseye!’_ Smirking in satisfaction, my other dagger lands home in Stain’s leg, the feather digging in deep.

“Damn _bitch!_ ” He howls, and slams his blade into the ground narrowly behind me. Jumping away, I hear a terrible ripping noise as his blade managed to catch on the bag that I was still carrying. Fumbling for a moment, willed my feathers to act like porcupine quills; while grabbing two. Without a second thought, I cut the straps away from me and tossed the daggers once more in two differing directions towards Stain. With a primal roar that made me jump backwards, Stain was starting to lose it. “Get out of my way!” 

Ducking just as another dagger manages to fly by my face, somehow this went from keeping me alive for some vague reason; to murder on sight. _‘Stain wasn’t onboard with this plan, and it really shows. Desca, you beautiful bitch, what the hell did you do to Stain of all people to get under his skin like this?’_

I can hardly believe that I’m managing to keep up with him, whether or not either of us intended to fight the other. From behind me, I can hear something coming from the trees and for the life of me, I was tempted to turn and look. God forbid the damn leoglets came back to play for round two! 

Prepping two daggers just in case, I took a few unsteady steps backwards to give us both some space as Stain began huffing wildly like a bull. With a gruff grunt, Stain ran the blade forward; until his body simply froze. Looking up towards his face, for a moment, nothing happened. 

It wasn’t until I looked into his red eyes that I saw the change happening, almost instantaneously. With a shake of his head, Stain is suddenly the one backing away, in his stupor, dropping his blades altogether, as tears begin to well in his eyes. 

Behind me, the sound from the trees grows more apparent and clear, and instead of leoglets, I can hear Desca’s singing. A soft melody seems to echo through the trees and all of it was focused on Stain. Turning towards Desca, I can see that her eyes are solely focused on Stain, her quirk in full effect now. 

With a sigh of relief; I nod towards her, knowing that she can handle herself at this point. Taking a moment to readjust and survey my surroundings, I can see Keigo, Shigaraki, and Dabi dancing around each other as they fight. _‘Time to be plus ultra and lend the boy a hand!’_

Heading over to the three-man fight, I gently dislodge the blade from my feathers, and wipe the blood from the blade. Tucking it in amongst my armor. Surely, I could find a use for this later? Afterall, Stain had found a use for them the entire _fight!_

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Shoto who was coming in hot with a trail of Twices, like a strange parade of men in black morph suits, behind him. Coming to a stop, I readied a feather dagger. 

It was strange to say the least, seeing Twice duplicating himself. Though it was a testament to Shoto’s ability to hold his own as he managed to hold Twice back. As Shoto came to a stop in front of me, he had managed to create a three-on-one fight, and I’m sure if Shoto had his way he would eventually make it a one-on-one. 

Looking between the three Twices, it was hard to determine which one was the real body as they all began to emulate the same motions and conversation. Which was best to get underneath Shoto’s guard from the way it sounded. Something to do with Izuku and the scouting corps in the mountains, whatever it was about; it was definitely getting to Shoto. His moves had begun to slow down and even his hand-to-hand seemed to involve more punching than his usual usage of extending his powers through his body as a conduit. _Is it pride, exhaustion, or fear?_

Before I knew it, one of the Twice clones or at least I hoped it was a clone; separated itself from the group, so that it was facing me directly. Without a word, two more formed next to him, as the third took off towards the trees but strangely he wasn’t going to where Stain, Shigaraki or Dabi were; was there someone else out there waiting for them? 

_‘Well, at least these are clones.’_ Readying myself once more for a fight, I didn’t give them a chance to prepare for me as I charged the first one on the right. As both prepared to punch me, I ducked beneath them and slid through the opening between their bodies. As I came back up onto my feet, I made sure to plant a dagger into the side of the Twice that had been on my right side. 

Turning tightly, I used my wings to push the injured one forward and whether propelled by the gust of wind or dramatics, the clone Twice rolled forward and made a clone that made my heart stop. 

From the mud that the clones developed from; was a clone that matched me to a T. The clone of me; smiled sadistically and without a second’s hesitation, launched two feather daggers that landed in the heads of the two Twice clones. Both were a murky sludge on the ground as my own clone moved towards me with a feral sway of her hips, her smile disarmingly sweet; yet dangerous.

_‘Is this how I look to other people? Damn . . . just damn.’_

“Oh, don’t act like you’ve just noticed that you’re a bombshell, _Saku._ ” My clone said mischievously, her wings splayed out in a power stance that would make Keigo proud. 

“It’s not disconcerting for you so see me?” _‘Because it was certainly surprising from this end!!!’_

Raising her brow in response, the motion was definitely distinctive as something I did regularly but it was disturbing to see it how the rest of the world must. “Like a mirror, don’t you think, _hermosa_ (beautiful)?” With a wink, she came closer, but quite frankly, that was seeming like a pretty bad idea for every step that she took closer, lifting my feather daggers; the clone made a tsking noise in response. 

“Come now, Saku, why do we have to fight?” She held her hands out in a peaceful gesture and normally; I think I would be willing to trust myself but there was something sinister in her eyes that said otherwise. 

“That is a loaded question, where do you want me to start? With this entire _situation_ , or that fact that you’re a clone?” With a chuckle, that made me put my guard up, something was definitely up. 

“Let’s start with this _situation, Saku._ ” Running a hand through her hair, the purple strands caught the light, and it looked like a purple fire was dancing through her fingertips. “This whole situation could be solved so easily, if you’d just be honest with . . . well, everyone.” The clone made a point of looking around the battlefield, “Why are you bothering with all of this? You and Desca could be working towards getting _home_. Not playing hero in a fantasy world." 

“You’re dating Hawks, like that isn’t that the most self-projecting AU thing to do? What’s next, the grandiose resolution? You’ve had _plenty_ of chances to tell him the truth, and all you’ve done is cater to his need to believe that there’s someone who _understands_ him.” Pulling her wings in, her gaze leveled me in place, “Which is easy to do, when all you’ve done is read about his life, and emulate his mannerisms to cater to a crowd of thousands; every day, for years even. Stalkerish much?"

“I’m not here to fight you, I’m just here to be level.” Cocking her hip, the clone ran a hand through her hair once more. “You wouldn’t want to turn into a pumpkin at midnight, would you? Because that’s what’s going to happen if you keep letting everything snowball downhill, Saku. You need all the help you and Desca can get so you can go home. Don’t go burning your bridges before you get there.” 

“What would you know about _any_ of this?” Balling my fists, I almost forgot that I had my daggers in my hands, “Do you know what all I’ve been through?!” 

With a droll stare, it felt dumb saying that out loud; of course she did. Twice’s clones always have access to the most recent information of the person that is cloned and they have a fraction of the strength of the original. 

Lowering my guard, there had to be something more to this; something that I wasn’t seeing. It was in that moment though, that she moved in on me; like the apex predator that she felt she was. Until there was only inches between us, her hand buried into my hair. 

“What are you going to do, Saku? That’s my challenge to you, answer right and you win; wrong and _I_ win. So,” she elongated the word out, “what are you going to do about all of this, you aren’t a little girl who’s going to be able to hide behind others for much longer. You’re passing the threshold of your memories and the truth. So, what will you do?” 

Gripping her armor and staring down my clone, I felt my teeth grit, even while I wanted to fight but that wasn’t going to solve this. “Listen here, _pendejo_ (asshole), I _will_ tell Keigo, _everything_. There won’t be a need to hide about where Desca and I are from. We _will_ find a way back, one way or another and Dabi will give me the answer to all of this _bullshit_. If it involves All For One, then I will fight whatever _God_ thinks that they rule this world and whoever thinks that they can rule _me_ , will find themselves six feet under. Even if I’m the one getting in _my_ way.”

“Good answer, kiddo.” Releasing the death grip on my hair, my clone instead gently pecked a kiss onto both of my cheeks, before placing one onto my forehead. “Keep that thought in mind, and never succumb to this world. You and Desca only have each other, don’t forget that, fight to prove your worth every minute. Now go be a hero you glitchy bitch, before you ruin the mood. Pajarito needs your help.”

With that, for once Twice’s clone didn’t turn to sludge; rather,she seemed to fade into me and the strength that came with it, told me all that I needed to know. That I had passed her challenge and as a result I had gotten stronger. 

_But why did she have to bring up my Gl!tch cosplay?!_ Feeling my cheeks burn, I turned towards Shoto who had Twice bound to a tree unconscious. 

“I don’t know what that was but go, Saku.” Shoto pointed me towards Shigaraki, Dabi and Keigo. A moment later he took off towards Maya and Desca who were running from Stain, who must have broken free from Desca’s control. Riding on a stream of ice, Shoto looked more composed now. Maybe they had both needed a weird spiritual journey? 

Knowing that Maya and Desca would be fine with Shoto’s help, I took off towards the sound of shouting. Entering the fray of the three-man fight, I slowed down as all I could see were Dabi and Keigo. _Where the hell is Shigaraki?_

Focusing back on the now duo, Dabi had managed to kick Keigo back against a tree, his sinister smile back in its rightful place. Having a blue fire dance between his fingertips, I didn’t feel like this was the same fight that it had started out as. They were both covered in dirt, bruises, and cuts, but nothing life-threatening, unlike Stain’s attacks had been. 

“You know Keigo, I’m still not sure what mother saw in you but _seriously_? You think all of _this_ ,” he gestured to the fight going on around them, “is about you and me? How childish can you _be?_ This is more than you, me, this fight, that little hovel you call a home. It has everything to do with our very _world_! But you _heroes_ wouldn’t have the slightest clue about any of that now, would you?”

Dabi huffed angrily, steam escaping from his mouth as his chest heaved. Pushing himself off of the tree, Keigo looked to be in a similar state of unrest, “Then tell me, _Touya_! What _does_ all of this have to do with Saku and Desca? You’re the one playing the field, so what’s the _fucking_ endgame for you?!” He shouted at the dark-haired man, who only smiled in kind, his eyes glinting as they landed on me. 

Throwing his hand out, I only had a moment to react as blue flames cut through the trees. Dodging to the right, a clear divide was now between Keigo and I; and Dabi had placed himself at the center of everything. 

Wary at what Dabi was getting at, it felt like everything my clone had just drilled into me was coming to fruition. Checking once more for Shigaraki, it seemed that the man was more for working in the shadows as he was nowhere to be seen. Had he doubled back towards their base? Attempting to cut off Shoto with Maya and Desca or was he getting Twice from the tree? Any of the options would have been possible knowing Shigaraki’s aloof personality. 

With a howl, I looked across the flames to see that some of the fire had gotten Keigo’s feathers and likely, even while his outfit was perfectly intact; the magic armor that Dabi had given him, that was the only thing that made sense considering how flammable some of it was. 

Following the blue flames back to the source, Dabi’s turquoise gaze was alight with a mirthful glee but he was no longer smiling. His demeanor now controlled. This was what he’d been waiting for all along and now he was hot _and_ dangerous. _‘For fuck’s sake Saku, the enemy, it doesn’t get much clearer than that.’_ A part of my mind seemed to scream, while the other was in denial, _‘Why does he have to be hot?! There has to be a rule that you can’t be both. He can be evil, or he can be hot. Why did he pull the package deal?!’_

As though hearing my inner thoughts, Dabi’s smile returned but for the life of me, I couldn’t determine what emotion he was trying to convey. The ball was in his court and for all Desca and I knew; Dabi was the one with all of the answers that could change the narrative to this story. 

The sorcerer for his part kept his gaze on my own and the mischievous glint became apparent all too late as Dabi turned back towards Keigo. I don’t know what he was about to say, and yet there was a feeling of despair that was beginning to swell in the pit of my stomach.

“Tell me Keigo, has Saku and Desca ever told you where they hail from?” He asked the question as politely as one would inquire about the weather. The corners of his lips curled into a smirk, “Surely, for the love you both seem to share, she must have brought it up once? After All, when we were young, all you talked about was your family, your love of chicken and the hovel you called your home.” 

Turned his gaze back to me, I knew what he was doing, and yet I felt powerless to stop any of it from happening. “It doesn’t matter where she comes from and it definitely isn’t any of your concern, Touya. She’s from a country from the western seaboard, she and Desca wound up here and now they’re trying to get back.” 

“Dabi, you don’t have to do this, please.” I called out to him, understanding what this had all been building up to. It had never been about starting up a fight between the two groups, it had been for stirring the pot amongst _us._

Taking a few steps towards us, the sorcerer began to wave his hand in the air, the motion oddly similar to the time I had seen him when I . . . my cheeks burned immediately in realization. _‘That fucking pervert, he saw me . . . Dios mio, he actually kissed me! Is this cheating?’_

“Well, that can’t be right, because that would make this a pretty long-distance relationship, don’t you think so, Saku? Secrets between lovers is never a good sign, not at all.” 

I tried my best to cut him off but even I could see the tenacity in his eyes, “Don’t do it Dabi—” 

“Now now Saku, you’ll have your turn soon enough. You see Keigo, your girlfriend and her bestie here aren’t from our world at all. They were born and raised in a different world entirely, they just happened to wind up here, totally beyond their own control. But they know everything about _us_. Isn’t that right, Saku?” 

Turning towards Keigo, I could see the gears in his mind turning in denial and realization simultaneously. His fists balled at his sides, were the only indication that I was able to go off of that he was responding to the information at all. Even while confused, he still managed to lift his gaze to look at me but before I could say anything I felt like my body was suddenly being sapped of my strength and my mind began to slow down; as though my thoughts were being muffled. 

As I looked across towards Keigo, I saw him move in a similar fashion, was this some sort of spell that Dabi was trying to cast on them? Keigo took a few steps towards Dabi; before he swung his wings around, ejecting some of the feathers to attack Dabi with. Dodging the feather deftly, it felt like I was drunk and trying to operate my body. Everything was too heavy to work right. 

Succumbing to the numbing feeling, Keigo fell to the ground, but nevertheless reached out towards me, the fire having been put out by Keigo’s burst of wind. “What is he talking about, baby bird?” 

Rubbing my temple to try to push away my stagnated thoughts, I wished that Desca were here instead of me. She would have been able to explain everything so much better and clearer instead, she was fighting off an insane Stain. 

“Desca and I, we weren’t born in this world.” Falling towards the ground, I struggled to breathe as a weight seemed to be compressing on my chest. My mind kept lulling in a motion that was reminiscent of ocean waves, that were trying to pull me away from the shore of the waking world and into the unknown depths of sleep. Leaving me vulnerable to being taken by Dabi and whatever he had planned. “We’re from a different one entirely, one where this is considered the past. We appeared here without warning, but it happened wrong,” Darkness began to creep into my periphery and yet I couldn’t take my gaze off of the golden eyes that were in front of me. 

“Desca appeared here first, over a month ago and I appeared a few weeks ago. You found me when I wound up here, that’s the truth, Keigo.” The feeling of weakness persisted for a moment longer, until it began to recede, slamming my fist into the ground, I couldn’t help the cursing that left my lips. _‘Damn you Dabi, damn you to hell you bastard!’_

Searching Keigo’s golden eyes, all I could see was the hurt in his eyes, before he turned away from me; willing to focus on anything else. I knew that I deserved it, but it still hurt regardless. 

“How dreadful that she never told you, Keigo. At least you know that I haven’t _lied_ to you.” Snapping my eyes up towards Dabi, I couldn’t keep the seething hatred from boiling up, with a cry, I flapped my wings and ejected daggers towards Dabi. In return, all I heard was his sinister laughter. 

“Let that anger fester, Saku, and feed my machine, but that’ll have to be for another day. _Kurogiri!_ We’re done here!” Dabi’s voice rang throughout the forest, and a few moments later, the villain in question appeared through his warp gate that seemed more similar to a black hole. “Stay alive Saku, your role is still very necessary. Kurogiri, get the others in a moment, I think everyone needs a moment to wrap up any _loose_ ends.” 

Just as Dabi began to disappear into the warp gate did I manage to shout out, “Damn it Dabi, you owe me answers!” It was to no avail as the gate simply closed, Dabi’s returning laughter only making the situation more apparent. 

Pushing myself off of the ground, I looked across the blackened patch of grass that divided Keigo and I, and saw how Keigo looked at me. Although he didn’t cross his arms, there was a guarded look on his face, as his normally smiling face was now a firm line. _Fuck!_

****In the Forest****

“Desca!” Maya yelled as she followed diligently behind the bard deep into the forest, Stain trailing close behind on their heels, he shouts and howls of murder enough to make any animals within a five mile radius aware of his intent. As a bard, Desca had the ability to use music to control others and had been able to control the untamable Stain for a few moments, before the man’s iron will had broken the hold. Since then, bard and knight had been on the run from the hero killer throughout the forest floor. 

Skidding to a halt in front of some thickets, Desca planted herself for a moment as a plan came to mind, “We need to get rid of him!” She stated matter-of-factly and looked towards the knight in question. 

“Yeah, but how do you plan to do that?” Panting heavily, Maya began to lean a tree. “He’s not exactly as slow as a snail and all he’d down is move between the trees, or he barrels right through them! Not exactly inconspicuous, but it’s effective.” 

Nodding in agreement Desca drew out her kazoo, twirling the instrument between her fingers deftly. “I need to find an emotion that isn’t anger or determination. That’s all I’ve found so far and it’s only made him angrier. It’s what’s caused him to fucking hate me with the intensity that he does!” Standing in contemplation for only a moment longer, the duo stiffened when they heard a rustling nearby. 

Surveying the rustling noise, Maya moved along the thicket before she unceremoniously fell to the ground. Instantaneously she was pulled in, and Desca was on her feet running towards the spot Maya had been at before. “Maya?!” Desca shouted into the thicket, nothing immediately jumping out at her as being out of place. Not seeing anything, Desca crouched onto the ground and reached into the bushes with her hand, tapping the ground lightly and pushing branches aside to find an opening that would be large enough for a person to fit through. Reaching further back, it wasn’t until Desca was halfway into the bush that she felt a familiar hand, “Oh, thank goodness!” Grasping onto the hand, Desca began to pull Maya out of the thicket and onto her feet. “What the hell just happened? Are you okay sweetie?” 

Moving her hair out of her face, Maya nodded and began to brush herself off, “Yeah, thanks for that, those bushes were super dense. Must have been a damn leoglet, those fuckers are relentless when they’re hungry.” Giving Desca a small smile, Desca gave a few more pats to her body to make sure that the dirt, leaves, and bugs were off of Maya, before she was satisfied that everything was where it needed to be on her body. “So you were saying something about Stain, right?” 

Nodding in agreement, Desca looked around the area once more, and tried to listen to the hero killer’s heavy footfalls amongst the forest floor. “He didn’t follow us to this area, which is weird. It felt like he went back towards the clearing actually, something must have caught his attention. With the anger that he has, I honestly figured he would have pursued us a bit more.” Shaking her head to rid herself of the hole she was trying to dig herself into mentally, Desca continued to twirl her kazoo along her fingers as she tried to conjure a plan. “Well, let’s get back to the rest of the gang, maybe we can figure something out with everybody else.” 

Finally tucking the kazoo back into her belt; smiling when she feels a hand slide into her gloved one. Desca gives the hand a squeeze as they begin to head back, both of them staying alert; just in case Stain was waiting nearby in the forest, just out of sight. It wouldn’t be the first time that the man had relied on guerrilla warfare tactics to outwait her and it likely wouldn’t be the last time with his track record. 

“Desca, why does Stain outright hate you so much?” Maya asked as she began looking around at various trees and bushes; her gaze only straying to a tree in the distance, but she didn’t comment on what had caught her gaze. Rather, Desca noticed how she immediately pointed at a tree that Stain had bulldozed by on their initial path through the woods. 

“Well, I suppose I may have pissed him off once or twice but I can’t narrow down on any one thing that I really did. At most I caused some hubbub over some random thugs and few known villains that were known for theft in the north. Maybe he had some sort of oversight with them, but I’m not sure.” Sighing, the bard began to rub the back of her neck, before stopping suddenly as she heard some footsteps that were trailing behind them, that _definitely_ weren’t their own. 

“Do you hear that, Maya?” Listening intently to the sound, Desca turned to make a small circle around, letting go of Maya’s hand in the process. Narrowing her eyes, it took a moment for her to see it, a large shadow that was just inside the shadow of more trees. “Get ready, we’ve got company.” 

**** break ****

Back by the bushes a low groan could be heard as a hand moved to rub on a temple gingerly. “What the fuck just happened?” Groggily the voice was slurred from disorientation and pain. Slowly beginning to stand, the individual quickly doubled over, the sense of nausea overwhelming their senses; heaving for a moment, nothing came out, but a terrible migraine did begin to take roost her skull. “Fuck, my skull hurts. What the hell pulled me to the ground like that?” Looking around on the ground, they saw their own footprints as well as another pair, “What in Dawkt Kaihbs’ name happened to me?” 

Taking a few steps, they continued to slowly walk until the glint of glass caught their attention. Moving towards the object, they picked up the vile and gave it a whiff; the scent of copper burning itself into their senses. “Shit! That bitch took my place!” Growling at the realization of what had happened, Maya looked for another clue to go off of to where they may have headed. 

Getting out of the bushes and spotting footprints nearby, Maya sighed, at the very least they were headed back to camp. “May Dawkt Kaihbs have mercy on your putrid soul, bitch, because I won’t be able to.” Shaking her head, the nausea likely wouldn’t go away, the hit to the head she’d taken would take a bit to clear up. Sprinting after the footprints, Maya couldn’t waste any time, or it would be too late! 

**** Break ****

Eyeing the figure in the woods, Desca couldn’t help but notice how uncharacteristically quiet Maya was being. Maybe the fall really had taken it out of her; reaching into the folds of her cloak, maybe she had some water or medicine that would help with the headache she must have been having to deal with. The only downside was that her canteen was near her knife. 

“Are you okay, Desca? You’ve been pretty quiet for awhile now.” Maya asked her, her eyes concerned, but there was something else there, even her emotions didn’t feel quite right. Had the fall given her a concussion of some sort? 

“No,” Desca shook her head in disagreement, “Someone is watching us, were you not able to hear them?” Taking a step back to inspect Maya once more, something in the back of her mind was screaming that something was off; she just needed to look a little deeper. “I’m used to you being the idea person, to be honest, having you be so casual is throwing me off a little.” 

“I’m just trying to stay relaxed, after all, who knows what all is out there?” Maya stated simply, “We’re fighting with Stain and whatever else thinks we look tasty.” 

Desca noticed how her gaze went behind her and stiffened as she saw the ecstatic look in Maya’s eyes that she’d never seen before. It was the look you’d see on a cat, just before they’d pounce upon their prey. _‘Fuck’_ , Desca couldn’t help but think as she tried to whirl around; her quirk finally picking up on Stain’s murderous intent. 

Seeing the man’s sinister face, Desca went to lunge out of the way just as Stain threw his dagger with deadly precision, the dagger landing in her thigh. Yelling out, the dagger was embedded in the back of her thigh and falling to the ground hard; all Desca could do was cry out, “Maya, help!” 

Tsking in response, Desca looked up to Maya; who now had a wide and sadistic smile on her face, “But what am I supposed to do Desca? He’s so _strong and fast!_ And neither of us are faster than him, Hawks and Saku are the fastest in our group.” 

The smile that was on her face made all sorts of warning bells go off inside of Desca’s mind but for the life of her she couldn’t make heads or tails of the information that should have made sense. Kneeling down beside Desca, Maya suddenly seemed to have a strange fascination with her blood that had begun to stain the forest floor. Within her own outfit, Maya had begun to reach for something before she stopped, her gaze going between the wound and Desca’s face. 

“Y-you can heal wounds! Maya, what is _wrong_ with you?” Hitting the ground in frustration, Desca looked up at Maya, until she saw how Maya’s tongue swiped along her lip and teeth as Maya looked at her blood. The pieces all falling together until it all made sense. _Shit! It can’t be . . . no . . . no no no no, not like this!_

In front of her, the façade of Maya fell away to reveal Toga. Groaning at the realization, how could she have been so blind to have not seen the signs! How in the world could this be happening now?! Desca watched how the blonde began to readjust herself and began pulling an empty vial from her outfit, from which she could tell had a number of other vials hidden within the confines of the coat. 

“Fuck off Toga, you’re not getting my blood!” Quickly flinging her hidden dagger directly at the villainess’ gut, internally grateful when she heard the scream of pain from the blonde. Smirking at Toga as stumbled back, her viperous yellow eyes now enraged, instantaneously Desca felt her cheek explode in pain as Toga had slapped her. 

“You fucking _bitch!_ I will get you for that!” Not removing the dagger, it was no surprise that Toga knew how to care for her own wounds. When you live for draining the blood out of others, you probably become aware of how much you want to keep your own inside of yourself. 

By now Stain was probably enjoying the show, it would likely mean he would be able to get two annoyances out of the way. Especially as the bard began to crawl away to create distance between them; easy prey was the kind one could appreciate the most. Desca would just have to make sure to make him fight for it until the very end. 

Nodding at Toga, who groaned in response, Stain’s voice cut through the trees, and made Desca’s stomach curdle, “Toga, go find Dabi and get patched up. I’ll deal with Desca.” Drawing his katana, he ran his tongue along the metal; the familiar tang of his prior kills causing his pupils to dilate, it was enough to make Desca sick at the thought. 

Growling at Stain’s tone, Desca almost wanted to believe the Toga was offended at the gesture of Stain now taking her kill but that wasn’t how Toga worked. “Don’t kill her, remember Dabi wants her alive too, ya know!” Angrily Toga looked towards the prone bard, “Don’t worry though, I’ll get you back for this,” she indicated the stab wound, “and for Maya too!” 

Hobbling through the trees, the wound must have been deeper than expected, as Toga seemed to struggle to stay upright as she held the blade in place. _Good riddance, fucking bitch._

Sighing at the reminder, Stain huffed in agreement at Toga’s parting words, “For some reason, that damned sorcerer needs you alive but he never said anything about the condition you had to be in.” Pointing the tip of his sword at Desca’s gut, he made a slow feint, to intentionally make her roll away from being impaled. Gasping as a new assault of pain roiled through Desca’s body, the dagger in her thigh was pushed in further. 

“Shit,” looking up into Stain’s putrid face, he looked right back down at her; his look that of an executioner preparing his tools. Falling back onto the ground in defeat, the situation wasn’t in her favor, “get it over with, Stain.” Grabbing her leg to staunch the bleeding, Desca wouldn’t let the man have the liberty of killing her where she couldn’t see him. 

“Cute, but Dabi _actually_ needs you alive. All I’m going to do is carve you up a bit.” As though to make a point, Stain used his katana to collect some blood from her wound. As disgusting as it was, the moment he licked it; Desca knew she was fucked either way, whether she lived or died didn’t matter at this point because the paralysis was just as bad as she’d believed it would be. 

“You knights are all so high and mighty. It’s no wonder none of you see the toxic nature that you pass onto others. The damage that you all sow onto those that have done nothing to you yet are forced to fear you.” Stalking around her body, it felt like she was being stalked by a vulture. 

The tip of the sword rests on Desca’s right shoulder but when he pushed he met chainmail; grunting he moved the sword to her side and was met with the same thing...chainmail. “Prepared little bard, aren’t you now?” 

Desca could hear the frustration in his voice as she smirked to herself, _‘of course I came prepared, you asshole.’_ Trying to move, even just a little bit away could help make the difference in whether or not someone would see them. Maybe Shoto or Saku would run into the forest and they would follow any of the number of footprints that were around? Trying to scoot along the ground discreetly, was no use as the paralysis was in place, and for every minute she waited her leg was only getting more mangled in the process and the blood loss certainly wasn’t helping. If only she could just rip a piece of her tunic, it was the best shot she had at slowing the flow of blood from her leg if she could make a tourniquet. 

As though finding a place to _carve her up_ , Stain smirked and readied his blade once more, “Alright Thrush, let’s have some fun now, alright?” Grinning wildly, he thrust his sword forward where leg would meet the hip on her right side; and like a knife going into butter. Desca watched in horror how the blade sank into the flesh and screamed in agony, her body trapped in a prone position that gave the villain full access to the exposed part of her body. 

Waiting a few moments until he had determined that Desca was used to the pain, did Stain then turn the blade in her skin; eliciting a new round of screams from her lungs. Just as he was about to turn the blade once more, did he whip the blade out; rendering one more scream from Desca, just as a figure came barreling at him. 

So focused on the task at hand, it was obvious that Stain had been too distracted to realize anyone had been coming up from behind him. Being thrown to the ground; Stain didn’t have time to react as a hand reached beneath his bandages, a sudden ripping pain being dredged from the old wounds on his left arm. Looking down the bandages were red with fresh blood and following the offending hand that was touching him; was none other than the bitch Toga was supposed to deal with. 

Scrambling back, it wasn’t like Toga to not finish a job. Guess she really did lose herself to some flighty emotion of affection. Stain knew that he’d make Toga pay for the fuck up later on, he’d even deliver this little bitch so that she wouldn’t do it twice. 

“Couldn’t even lay down and play dead for another few minutes, could you? Had to go an ruin all of the fun.” 

Snarling from lips that would normally only smile, this was a side of Maya that Desca had never seen before. “The next time I see that bitch, will be the last time she sees anything at all! Do you hear me, you bastard!” Maya growled out as she wiped her hand onto the grass, getting the villain’s blood off of her hands. Standing up, the snarl on her lips didn’t disappear, “What were you two even playing at, huh? I’ve known about Toga’s quirk, for months and you chucklefucks thought to use it _against_ me?!” Lunging for the villain, Maya only missed him by a few inches as Stain moved out of the way, his left arm dangling uselessly by his side. 

“What the hell did you do to me?” He growled at Maya, as he tried unsuccessfully to move the appendage. Slumping against a nearby tree, it was all he could do to hold himself up as wounds seemed to open across his body without warning. 

Flexing her hand, Maya grinned maniacally as Stain came to realize what was going on. “I can open old wounds like they’re brand new . . . I took a guess that you had a few underneath those bandages. Too bad they weren’t for cosmetic effect.” Kneeling down next to Desca, Maya made sure to not take her eyes off of Stain, “If you’re not careful, I might just feel inclined to open up a few more.” Holding up a hand, Maya revealed her palm, with a small cut opening up, and little prongs coming out like a creature that was snapping its mouth open and close. 

Reeling back in realization of all of the scars that littered his body, there was a strong likelihood that in Stain’s profession, a few of those were likely to also be life threatening. Taking the gamble, Maya watched how Stain came to realize the position that he was in. “Piss off knight, I _will_ see you both again!” Glaring at the two on the ground, Stain made haste to take off into the forest. 

Visibly relaxing, Maya turned back towards Desca, “Let’s get you fixed up, yeah?” Gripping the dagger with one hand, Maya rested her other hand around the blade, “Not gonna lie, this is gonna hurt . . .” Looking at Desca, she only nodded in understanding as the paralysis began to wear off.

Maya began to pull the dagger out, all the while focusing on her healing to help mend the wound quickly. She winced when she heard Desca wince and whine through her teeth in pain. “I’m sorry babe, I don’t think I’d win best girlfriend award just yet.” Completely removing the dagger, Maya tossed the blade to the side and made sure that the wound was completely healed before moving up to the wound on her hip. When that wound was healed as well, did Maya remove the tourniquet. 

“Fuck that hurts,” Desca hissed through her teeth, “thanks by the way.” She trailed off as Maya rested a hand on various parts of her body that had taken damage. The worst of it having been taken care of first. 

“Thanks for what, babe?” With a knowing smile, Maya grasped Desca’s hand and sat back on her heels for a few minutes, to admire her handiwork and to admire Desca. But she didn’t need to know that. 

Looking away from Maya, Desca couldn’t find the courage to look at Maya, “For basically saving me, I couldn’t find an emotion that I could use against _either_ of them. And Toga . . . she looked and talked like . . .” shaking her head, Maya urged her Desca to look at her, “I feel like an idiot.” 

“That’s what partners are for, being there when you need em, right?” Desca smiled over at her and that was reward enough in Maya’s book, especially as she helped pull Desca to her feet. 

“Only partners?” Desca looked at Maya through her lashes and Maya had to look away for a moment to compose herself. 

Grinning the bard put Maya on the spot as she sputtered and took a few steps backwards, “No, not just partners, I just mean . . . how did you put it during our talk? . . . Like girlfriends?” 

Chuckling, Desca agreed, “Yeah, girlfriends sweetie.” Pulling Maya in for a quick kiss, she grasped her hand, “Come on, let’s get back to the others now.” 

“Take it easy, you’re healed but you’ll be pretty low on energy for a while.” Maya cautioned as she passed Desca a small canteen of water to drink. 

Accepting the water, Desca drank slowly before responding, “Right, that’s a good point. By the way, do you know anything about something Stain said? It was something to do with us knights knowing what we have done to others?” 

Walking slowly back towards camp, Maya scratched her head for a moment in contemplation, “I have no idea what that means, we can tell the others when we get back. It shouldn’t take us too long.” Maya replies as she moves a few branches out of the way, “let’s just hope they had better luck than we did.” 

*****Back at Camp Saku’s POV*****

“Saku, why didn’t you tell me? Did you think I wouldn’t try to understand?” Hawks ran his hands through his hair, and when that didn’t work he threw his hands into the air, his wings flapping in his confusion. The need to blow off steam stronger than ever before and I couldn’t blame him, my own wings were mimicking the motions. All I wanted to do was fly away from this entire situation. 

We had been going back and forth like this for awhile now. Ever since Dabi had left, Keigo had managed to hold it together until they had reached the camp unscathed. The only thing they’d noticed was that Twice had been missing from the three and Shoto had had a run in with Shigaraki. Thankfully he hadn’t been injured but it sounded like Shigaraki had left the moment he’d made his grand entrance to save Twice. 

“It’s not like I didn’t want to tell you, Keigo. I was going to tell you, eventually!” I couldn’t help but to trail off, when the reality was; this could have been solved awhile ago but fear had kept me from acting. “There really wasn’t a good time, and I was afraid of how you would react!” 

Sitting down on a log, I couldn’t help but grunt at the impact, pulling my wings in close; I really didn’t like any of this. Shoto for his part was acting like a good child of a divorce and was looking to perform any task that didn’t involve being around either of us. 

Keigo walked over, but this wasn’t how I had intended any of this to go. Pulling my wings in even closer, I couldn’t help the fear that had begun to nestle its way into my heart. What would this mean for Desca and I? 

“Saku . . .” Keigo trailed off for a moment, before he sighed, slumping down on the other end of the log he didn’t face me. “I guess I’m only proving your fears right. Yes, I’m mad that you didn’t tell me but how the hell am I supposed to help you, if I don’t even know the whole picture?” Looking over towards him, at least his wings weren’t beating wildly like before, now they simply slumped. All of the intimidation gone, instead of a sense of quiet sadness. 

I knew that he had a point, but I also hadn’t known how he would react to all of this. In the end, it was the fear of not knowing that had kept me quiet, and that was that. 

Slumping my shoulders in defeat, “Look Keigo, I’m sorry, this,” He turned for a moment to face me, indicating everything around me and waving my arm to indicate my body, “all of this is strange to me, these wings. I’ve never had wings before, people with wings don’t exist where I come from, let alone having actual _powers_. When I got here, my only focus was to find Desca and now, it’s to find our way back to our world. . . but I don’t know if I want to go back at all now.” Rubbing the back of my neck, I wait for whatever onslaught of words Keigo has for me. Anything at all, I know that I now have to face it all head on. 

“I appreciate your honesty now. I just need to think on this for a bit. Keep an eye on camp, Saku.” With that, he stood up, and a moment later he was gone, a few of his burnt feathers floating down to the ground. 

Covering my mouth, I couldn’t keep the tears from rolling down my cheeks. This was for the best, to be honest with him and to take on the consequences of betraying his trust. If he didn’t want me back after this, I would have to deal with that as well. The priority would either be to stay here and adapt, or to continue to find a way home. 

****TBC****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Exxie23 for helping with editing!


	8. Tension and Weird Encounters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Sometimes, life is a bitch, stuck in a tree, screaming.

Letting my wings splay out behind me, the waning sunlight was a sure sign that the day was almost done at this point. Another day of not finding Dabi, the League of Villains or Stain . . .

It felt like it had been so long ago rather than just a few days and so much had changed in such a short amount of time. With the League’s retreat, they’d somehow managed to leave Twice or his clone behind; no one was really sure and no one wanted to find out.

Looking over towards the bound villain, he’d been pretty quiet since they’d tied him up to a tree and stripped him of his weapons, his hands bound to the ground. He never said anything that made sense but when the days were long; there seemed to be snippets of sanity that slipped through. It was usually some lamentation of his situation or some contemplation of what we would do to him. The places he dwelled in for comfort still made my skin crawl; somewhere between the second day and the fourth day, Twice had convinced himself that we were all just stringing him along to kill him in front of his friends. 

Where he’d gotten the notion, I didn’t know but for some reason the thought wouldn’t leave the older man’s mind and every time someone started a shift watching him, he’d ask the same question. “So, are you going to be the one to do it? To set me free?” It certainly hadn’t helped that he’d stopped accepting food and drink the day before, his resolve settled.

There was strength in his resolve, if I could even call it that. Twice knew what he could handle and what he wasn’t willing to deal with. Ever since the battle had ended, my resolve had practically crumbled; the bravado of fighting myself had only left me cold and disconnected.

Dabi, who had given everything away, hadn’t even had the decency to leave me a reprieve from the insanity that this world had brought with it. Keigo would only come to camp once per day and he never stayed for very long. The conversation between the two of us had never felt tenser than it did in the few moments before he would leave. 

Every time he came down, he would start with an aerial report, then the report from Shoto’s secret connection to the scouting corps and finally ask how our search had gone. Which so far had led to dead ends or monster pits. Ever since the fight, it felt like Keigo was trying to put distance between us; whenever we were alone together, he would find a reason to leave, to go on _patrol_ and I would be left on the ground floundering where to go from there. It didn’t matter what I had to say; there was just this look in his eyes, like he was having to force himself to interact with me and the moment I would turn away, he’d be gone again. 

It was like everything up to this point meant nothing; we might as well be perfect strangers at this point. The things that we had talked about, the moments that we had shared, it was all just dust on the wind, fleeting, frail and subject to a gale that would surely blow it away. 

Sitting down on the stump near Twice listlessly, I grasped a dagger and tossed it towards a tree that was in front of me, my target a knoll that was now a distinct hole. Telepathically pulling the dagger back, the motion was ingrained as I tossed it again, once more burying the dagger into the same hole. Pulling, throwing and watching the dagger dig ever deeper, the motion was repetitive and monotonous, only broken up by trying to control the dagger by having it take different directions to the hole. Most of the time the dagger wound up in a different tree but I had been lucky enough a few times to warrant trying it again. Pulling the feather back to me was easier than pushing it in opposing directions towards the target. 

As Shoto came through the trees, I knew by the frown on his face and scratches on his cheek that he hadn’t had any luck going through his trails. In fact, it looked like he’d managed to fall down the hill at some point, his pant leg scraped and covered in brown dirt and green stains, likely from the grass. 

“Lose a fight with gravity?” Nodding down at his leg, Shoto froze for a moment before his hand swiped against his pant leg for a moment, as though he hadn’t realized he’d fallen at some point.

Furrowing his brow, it wasn’t the first time that they’d forgotten something and stumbled back into camp. Maya had found a patch of mushrooms that she’d recognized as causing realistic hallucinations. It must have been a jarring experience, the moment Maya had come back to camp; she and Desca had dissolved the barriers that had previously divided them and now they were as close as could be. 

Slumping against the tree next to me, Shoto didn’t speak for a while even though his hands shook. Clasping them to stop the erratic movements, he lowered his head into his hands. “I found a patch of those hallucinogenic spores . . . I knew what was happening wasn’t _real_ , but it was like it was actually _happening_ .” He paused for a moment, his head held in his hands and if he was crying, I couldn’t and _wouldn’t_ say. “My father always wanted me to be the number one Knight that would succeed him, to become the next Grandmaster Knight. I was born and bred to perform that role but I’ve never felt comfortable with my fire powers.” He paused, as though he wasn’t sure if he should continue. Leaning back against the tree, his eyes focused on the sky above the camp, as though that was where his famed lover was. 

“My husband has always told me that my powers are a part of me, and that I need to accept myself the way that I am, or my powers could consume me. All I saw was my fire raging out of control and burning _everything_. _Goddess_!” He slammed a fist into the ground, “I can’t get the _screaming_ out of my head!” 

“Then know that Izuku is safe in the mountains, that’s what you said right? That he was training to become head of the Scouting Corps for the kingdom? Izuku is freezing his ass off in the northern mountains. If you did lose control, he might just use you as a fire starter to keep warm.” Chuckling at the notion, he coughed a few times to offset some of his tears, “I suppose you have a point.” 

“Damn right I do,” tapping his shoulder with my fist; those heterochromatic eyes looked up at me, now calmed down and radiant. A new fire likely burned in his soul, one that was more focused than the vision that he’d seen before. “We’re getting closer everyday to learning the truth about all of this, we just need to make some headway in finding the right trail to his castle. Then we’ll finally work towards the conclusion of all of this.” 

“There’s only a handful left that it can be,” he agreed, his breathing now calm as he steepled his fingers in front of him. “Dabi might be playing with us but he’s going to run out of trails that he can hide behind eventually.” Standing up, Shoto stretched until even I could hear the distinct pop of his bones. Groaning when he was finally limbered up, his shoe tapped against my log seat; a sign that he was ready to take over the shift now. “My turn,” nodding towards the campfire, the smell of food had been wafting through the forest for the last few hours, “now it’s your turn to eat and fall down a mountain, and then rest.” 

“Smart ass.” Smiling good naturedly at Shoto’s new stance on the journey ahead, if there was any _win_ to get out of today, it would have to be that. I haven’t seen anything get under Shoto’s skin like that, and hopefully I’ll never have to again, we just have to find Dabi. 

The thought at this point had been running circles around in my head and I couldn’t get it to stop. That Dabi _knew_ something related to Desca and I being here, which meant he would be the one who could _get us back_. Where my impatience made me want to blaze through every trail, my mind made me feel like I was trapped. 

To say it was claustrophobia didn’t adequately describe what was happening; if anything, it was this feeling that the walls were closing in, but the open sky above me was always calling out. It was a surreal sensation, where my body would lock up, but my mind began to wander about everything that I could do if I just _moved_ .

Just one step, then another, and another after that. 

Turn that walk into a run and _launch_ myself into the sky! 

It would be that easy to just escape from these feelings that seemed to just bog down my mind and shackle my body to the ground. 

But the moment my eyes landed on Desca and Maya, I knew that that wasn’t going to be a possibility. As they sat around the fire, sharing a leg of something that had been hunted earlier in the day, the pang of fire that burned down my throat and became entangled in my chest wasn’t quite jealousy and it wasn’t quite anger, but it was definitely some venomous child of the two. 

_‘Don’t be dense, you know this feeling, Saku!’_ I berated myself, _‘Envy is certainly a devil in its own right!’_ _I deserve to be like that again, I worked for it too!_ The way their hands were intertwined as they leaned in close, their conversation intimate. Biting back the fire that burned inside of me, the reality was I wasn’t angry at Maya, and I definitely couldn’t be upset with _Desca._

It just didn’t feel fair, that Maya had been so quick to accept and understand our story, and yet Keigo couldn’t be bothered to stick around long enough to _learn_ it. Had the relationship and the moments we shared up to this point . . . were they really so frivolous? 

Maybe surviving Toga and Stain had provided the catalyst that they both needed in order to come together. It was the only thing at this point that stood out, besides their charisma. After the fight, it was like Maya had just gone with the flow of everything that she hadn’t understood before. If there was something that didn’t make sense, Desca would explain it and that was all Maya needed. 

The simplicity of it all was as frustrating as it was refreshing, to know that there didn’t need to be secrets, and some things just _happened._ Hell, Keigo and I had gone against Dabi and that had only managed to create the divide between us; maybe fighting some shit-stain like Shigaraki could have mended everything, just like it did with them. 

After the battle, between the can of worms blowing up, Desca had come clean to Maya about _everything_ , and she had been apologizing for _everything._

Without batting an eye, Maya had pulled the bard in and whispered something into her ear. Even now, I didn’t know what was brought up but after that it was like a light had been switched. Maya and Desca could always be found together, regardless of the time of day or the mission that they needed to accomplish. Which had somehow led to Shoto becoming her new ally in heartbreak and misery, and he was fucking _married._

Stepping up to the fire, I scooped myself a bowl of soup from the cauldron; the calories that would have been enough to make me faint at home, now gave me just enough energy to operate with my wings all day. Goddess forbid if I could get a hand on the medieval version of an energy drink, maybe then I wouldn’t feel so weighed down. 

“Howdy, lovebirds, any news?” Plopping down near the fire, I ate with a fervor I certainly didn’t feel. The food felt like mud in my mouth, but it went down easy enough that I didn’t care; nothing had tasted right since the fight. 

“Is the stew really that appetizing?” Maya asked with a smile, gingerly pulling a piece of meat off of the leg and handing it over to Desca, who took it gratefully. I couldn’t get myself to meet her gaze, or it would definitely tip her off that something was wrong, and she didn’t deserve to have to deal with my negativity right now. 

Watching how Maya pulled slivers of what looked like tendon or bone from the meat, I already knew that I had made the right choice going for the stew. “Yeah, what can I say, I don’t like fighting my food just to eat it.” Making a show of finishing up the stew quickly, I went for a second helping knowing that one serving wouldn’t be enough to give me the energy that I would need to fight. 

I had made that mistake once, and I didn’t intend to do it twice. Gingerly rubbing my side, the bandage was still secure but would likely need to be changed soon. Luckily, I had had the last laugh as I looked at the aramoose meat, the armored scales of the creature being used as the fire poke stick and bowls. The scales were apparently naturally fireproof and they were damn near invulnerable. Once an aramoose coiled into a ball, they gave zero fucks as to what they would run into or roll over. The only thing that mattered to them was the distance between point A and point B. 

Listening to Maya and Desca banter back and forth, I could almost pretend that this was just some elaborate camping trip and I was just the third wheel in the group. Eating through the stew, the sensation became more unpalatable the longer I tried to slough through it. Where it had started out as an amorphous sludge, the longer I tried to eat through it, it felt like I was trying to actively swallow sludge. Stomaching the concoction, I couldn’t get myself to dump the food, partially because Desca and Maya were in front, and partially because they had worked together to make it. 

Under any other circumstance, I knew that the food was fine, not the most seasoned, but edible. It would keep a starving college student alive, maybe not sustainably healthy, but alive. However, the way I was feeling, I just needed a long sleep that would end up with me waking up in my bed, getting ready to prepare some new CMV with Desca, interacting with my fans on Patreon, Discord and TikTok. 

The throbbing in my side swept those thoughts away swiftly, and it only left me feeling more resigned to this world. Swallowing the last of the bowl, I set it near the fire; I’d have to clean it anyway, along with everyone else’s dishes. That was the trade off at least; if you didn’t cook it, you had to clean it. It was as good as it was going to get. 

Getting up to move around, my shift on the trails was about to start. The familiar rustling of branches from overhead, quickly followed by a harsh _thud_ , told me that Keigo was finally back. For how long he’d stay was a different story. 

Stretching, I didn’t bother moving any closer or further from the fire. Keigo sat down and nabbed a nearby bowl, filling it to the brim; he sat and began to eat, his eyes only focused on what was in front of him. Beyond that, the world likely didn’t exist. 

“Looks like we’re right back where we started.” He mumbled, dropping the bowl onto the ground. “I took a look along the mountain range but there’s just a pack of deornicorn and arabis dinch. “They aren’t normally this active . . . something’s pushing them to migrate early.” Running a hand through his unkempt hair, the strain of the last few days was even beginning to show on Keigo. He hadn’t been sleeping like usual, his nights broken up with nightmares; even now his body would slump as though prepared to sleep, before he would twitch and perk awake. As though the fear of falling asleep was greater than his need for rest. 

The rings around his eyes had only grown darker just as his temper had grown shorter. If anything set him off at this point, he would be gone with only leaves in his wake fluttering to the ground. 

Desca looked over at Keigo and to say that she glared, would have been an understatement but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what was going on. The way her lips turned down on one side spoke volumes; whatever emotion Keigo was feeling, Desca did not approve of. Brought to you by this seal of disapproval. 

Whether or not he was going to acknowledge her glare was another thing altogether as Keigo turned around and walked over to Shoto. Their talk seemed only mildly more engaging as Twice wiggled along the tree. Shoto spoke with his hands and Keigo’s hands remained clenched at his sides, his feathers bristling like a dog’s hackles as it was about to bite. 

“We followed a trail that forked,” Desca turned her head away from Keigo, her brows still knit together as she began to chew her lip. “Neither way led anywhere; one went to the plains west of here and the other went towards an arabis dinch cave structure to the north. We came back pretty quickly after that.” 

Nodding in agreement, Maya pulled her sword out and began to prep her nightly routine of cleaning, sharpening, cleaning and oiling the blade. The motion was automatic, even more so since the attack. Whether she was trying to find an excuse to keep her blade out or not, Maya was usually seen with her blade at the ready whenever she was near Desca, and especially when she wasn’t. 

“All we’ve been doing is following dead ends . . .” she grumbled and swiped harder at the blade that was across her lap.

Placing a hand on top of hers, Desca kept her grip steady until Maya looked up, “Every path that ends in disappointment will give us greater clarity for the ones that remain.”

Snorting at the notion, Maya kept her gaze on her blade, “Is that something you got from one of those . . . fortune cookies?”

Chuckling in response, Desca shook her head, “No no, it was something a dear friend told me. I think they were onto something. I –” she paused, her lips pursed while she kept her head down, “I didn’t have the chance to learn more from them though and I regret not being able to do more for them.” 

“Then I guess I’ll be the one to find us some more disappointment; you’ll have to be the one to find us the clarity though. Sound like a deal?” Walking by the bard, I patted her head gently before giving her shoulder a squeeze. Placing a hand on top of my own, Desca didn’t lift her head, she simply gave a light squeeze back before she nodded and released my hand. 

“Just be sure to come back . . . we _all_ need you, even if _some_ of us can’t show it right now.” Looking across the way, I saw Keigo’s wings jerk as all of the feathers seemed to move independently like the wind was blowing through them, but here on the forest floor there wasn’t even breeze. _Weird._

“I’ll be back before you can even miss me! I’ll be checking the area to the northeast,” plucking a feather from my wings, I made sure to hand it off to Desca for safe keeping. My feathers weren’t as sensitive as Keigo’s but I could still sense where any were at if I was close enough. On the flip side the further away I got, the more the feather would be able to act like a magnet to lead them to me if I took too long. 

“Well, if you run into any arabis dinch, be a doll and nab a venom sack for me would you? The venom works great for shining my blade when it’s mixed with oil.” Maya gave a broad grin, her eyes alight at the prospect. Smiling in return, it was all I could do to say _hell no_. 

Grabbing my knapsack for the trek, it wasn’t until I was at the edge of the camp that Keigo finally spoke and at first, I hadn’t realized he was even speaking to me. 

“I’ll try searching the south for anything, check in with Aizawa and the nearby village to see if there are any new reports from the scouting corps. S –” there was a hesitance in his tone, stopping to see if he would say anything further. Turning to give my attention, the weight on my chest made me want to continue into the forest, where the silence would be less tense than the eggshells I currently felt like I was walking on. 

“Be safe out there Saku, the forest is more active at night.” Running his hand through his hair once more, it felt like there was a chasm between the two of us. 

Why did this feel so _hard_ ? Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I readjusted the bag on my back. “I can handle myself, you’re the one that looks like they’re about to drop. You should get some sleep Keigo.” _‘You’re no good to the world if you die.’_

Walking into the trees, the sounds of the camp quickly transitioned into the sounds of nature, the leoglets overhead purring at their mewling young. An aramoose in the distance brayed, likely near a water source; Shoto said that they tended to make noise whenever they were near water. Being a creature of the earth, the aramoose tended to fear water, as their armored pelts could cause them to sink. Yet like all living creatures, they too needed water from time to time. 

The longer we stayed in the forest, the more I felt like I learned from nature, and simultaneously became acutely aware of how terrifying nature was. As I followed a shallow trail that seemed to lead me to yet _another_ aramoose, overhead I could hear the distinct rustling overhead of a young arabis dinch. The giant spider creature likely attempted to take on a leoglet that wasn’t watching their young. 

The circle of life at its finest, at this point I was convinced the turtle ducks were real too! Sadly, I hadn’t had the chance to ask anyone about the adorable, amalgamated creature. 

The tracks didn’t detour, although animal tracks laid on top of the footprints that guided my way. The tracks had to be somewhere between a few days to a week old, if the impression was anything to go off of. 

Taking a sharp turn, the path ended a few times in front of fairly nondescript trees. Marks were cut into the bark, but it was nothing that I could recognize from the rune book that Desca and Shoto had been reading through. 

At best the marks could have passed for elvish, yet there was something that looked familiar about them, maybe it was a personalized rune? 

Shoto had brought that up one time; it was like a calling card for the caster or a way to imbue an object with a specific magical signature. 

Magic on its own was considered an outlawed power due to its volatile and destructive nature, but there were types of covens that existed that only practiced particular magic to benefit the public. The cartographic scouting corps practiced magic that allowed the user to pull from nature: flora and fauna knowledge and the power to influence nature. The medicinal corps that practiced magic pertaining to the health and wellbeing of animals and humans, mentally and physically. Finally, sacred magic, that practitioners used to see the future, lay spirits to rest and to commune with those that hadn’t reincarnated. 

Anything that fell out of those three categories was referred to as wild magic. Magic that wasn’t confined by a particular nature, without training or refinement; it had the ability to act on its own as a living manifestation of the user’s emotions. 

Shoto hadn’t been able to really tell me much about that type of magic; between Maya and him, they’d both clammed up and tried to shut down the conversation. 

Which was strange to say the least. Shoto had spoken of how Izuku was working in the corps and documenting the process of the scouts’ usage of magic. Even Aizawa was considered a type of magic user, his ability to ‘erase’ abilities being seen as their Goddess’ divine attunement. The Great Equalizer, was how Shoto described the local deity. 

A goddess with the ability to maintain the balance of the magics as they correlated to the world. She worked through agents that would work on her behalf to balance the scales on the ground as they should be amongst the celestial bodies. 

Technically, Shoto had gone into a lot more detail but that had been the gist of everything . . . maybe? 

Brushing my hand against the rune, it lit up momentarily, a light black and blue color emanating from the mark that reminded me of a stylized superscript mark with smaller marks shooting away from the center to the outside. The color spread out to encapsulate the trunk of the tree like a band. Looking around, there were several other trees that began to glow in a similar manner, and they all seemed to be lighting a way through the trees. 

Once more hearing the aramoose bray, following the line of lit trees it was definitely heading in the general direction of the mildly distressed animal. Moving my hand away from the mark, the color slowly began to disappear until the earthy brown color returned to the bark of the trees around me. 

_‘That settles that then, Hansel and Gretel had breadcrumbs and I get glowing trees and eerie noises in the forest. Totally makes sense, maybe I’ll find grandma as well!’_ _**Not**_ . Huffing at the amount of _sus_ that this was, nevertheless, I followed where I had seen the closest tree light up and began following my trail of trees to the braying aramoose. 

Weaving and bobbing through the brush and the branches. All around there were signs of an aramoose getting ready to migrate for the coming winter months. When aramoose moved in open spaces they would coil into balls and roll in a general direction. Generally in the forests they would walk and bump into trees, usually moving the trees out of their way. Which really only proved that they were the literal equivalent to a bull in a china shop. However, by bumping into trees they also shed some of their older plates; although shedding would have been the polite way to put it. Some of the trees that I had followed up to this point had the bark rubbed away and the rune was barely decipherable, whereas other trees outright had holes through them from repeated impalement; the discarded plates poking out of the trees like jagged shields the size of dinner plates. Which was what they had used them for while camping nearby. 

Coming up on a small body of water, I made sure to keep a safe distance back from the cries of the animal, that at this point were deafening to listen to. But because danger and caution were practically my middle name - I decided to stand back along the trees, out of sight from the aramoose. Which was actually a small herd of them, specifically an adult with four babies.

The aramoose was a strange creature that belonged somewhere in a bestiary between an armadillo and a moose. The adults had an ashen pelt that during the daytime was a warbled color that was somewhere between brown, grey, green and tan. It helped them to naturally camouflage with their environment in the forest and mountains. Their pelt covered them from neck to flank and was damn near impenetrable; only their bellies were soft.

Although I still couldn’t figure out how a creature like this wound up with camouflage; quite frankly that just didn’t add up. But if biology had taught me anything, it just meant that their natural predator had died out or they had evolved at some point and the camouflage had stuck around. 

Which was evident by the four young ones that flocked around the adult. Their fur was an iridescent color that made them seem like they were constantly glittering with the refraction of a cut diamond. The color was apparently off putting to leoglets, who were unfortunate enough to try to eat them.

Rubbing my side as it began to throb, I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. Running into a juvenile aramoose had taught me to be vigilant whenever these guys were around. They’re omnivores that try too hard to be herbivores, their primary food source berries, grass, and grain. However, whenever their food source ran low, they were quick to take the head off of any creature nearby, like the arabis dinch that the juvenile aramoose had hunted down and began to eat before I had killed it.

Crouching on the ground, as it wouldn’t be wise to try to move around too much, it was a miracle that the aramoose hadn’t tried to roll over me as it was. Likely the four young were holding the adult’s attention as it brayed to keep the young out of the water. 

Pulling a canteen of water from my pack, I would have to refill it whenever the territorial animal decided to leave. Looking around the area, there didn’t appear to be any more footprints on the ground but there were still runes carved into the bark of the nearby trees. The runes that I could see followed around the small body of water and continued into the forest on the side of the lake that the aramoose was on. 

“Dabi,” I murmured into the canteen, “why do you have to be such a _cabrón_ (bastard/asshole)? You know more than you let on . . . _just_ ,” lowering the canteen back to the ground, I ran a hand across my face and through my hair, “ _give_ me something to go on!” 

Slowly looking back at the aramoose, the adult must have gotten fed up with the babes as it gave a bray that was much sharper and harsher than the previous noises that it had made up to this point. At the sound, the younger aramoose began to race around the adult and followed it back into the woods, the runt of the litter being the last to leave as it curled into a ball and rolled towards its family. 

Standing up, it would have to be now or never, goddess forbid the armored monstrosity come back because it forgot something! 

_‘Next time on the great outdoors – stay inside, this shit is going to be too much to handle!’_

Walking to where the aramoose had been, it was where the last tree had lit up with the rune. Along the water’s edge, there were signs of the young aramoose hooves having dug into the ground and their translucent spikes creating divots and holes in the ground. 

Refilling my canteen; if animals willingly drank from the water, it was at least a good sign that the water was clean. Tucking the canteen back into my knapsack, all too soon darkness would encompass the forest floor as the sunlight began to disappear quickly below the horizon. 

Walking up to the tree that had the rune, this one was different from the previous trees, where the ones before had been methodical and intricate, this looked to be rough and quick. The age of the cut told me that this rune had been on the tree for a number of years, I wouldn’t have been able to guess that it had a rune on it at all if it weren’t for the piece of cloth that looked to be nailed into a small hollow just below the rune. 

Reaching my hand into the hollow, the cloth dislodged easily as it hadn’t been nailed, rather _stapled_ into the wall of the hollow of the tree. Unwrapping the cloth, the fibers were stiff from age, but inside was a rusted staple, a red feather fletching, and white and black strands that were too thin to be string, but looked to be a fiber of some sort. 

Running my hand across the rune once more, instead of glowing the blackish-blue like previous times, now it was an angry red. 

Rearing back, my hand felt like it had been pricked by something. Dropping the cloth onto the ground, I checked my hand for an injury, yet there was nothing to be seen. Nevertheless, a sense of panic came over me as I moved away from the tree and tried to follow the other rune cut trees. 

Feeling my mind begin to race and throb, every tree that I tried to tap now glowed the same vibrant red but it was no longer restricted to the trees with runes now! 

Feeling my way along the path of trees, I eventually had to stop as the throbbing color in front of me began to overwhelm my other senses. Leaning my head against the nearest tree, I could only hear the throbbing of my skull and that seemed to be in time with my heartbeat. “ _Dammit_ , Dabi.” I growled through my teeth. Punching the tree, I tried to take deep breaths and work through whatever was going on. Opening my eyes slowly, the red color had begun to abate, and the darkness of the forest instead filled my vision as I stared at the ground. A few more moments after that, and even the throbbing sensation had passed. 

Sighing in relief, that was one less thing to have to worry about at least. A crinkling sound from behind caught my attention; whipping around I threw out a dagger in warning. However, I didn’t have to question who it was for very long as a small column of blue fire caught the feather and melted it to the ground below. Snapping my gaze up, lo and behold, it was the asshole in question himself, _Dabi_ . 

***** Dabi’s POV *****

“If it’s not my second favorite hero!” Dabi exclaimed, discreetly hiding a large jar into his robes, “I heard you calling for me?” Waggling his brows conspiratorially, Dabi crossed his legs and threw his arms behind his head dramatically, “Finally getting tired of Keigo or is he just being obstinate? That man will _never_ learn I’m afraid.” 

“What the hell do you want? We’ve spent that last few _days_ looking for your _tonto del culo_ (dumb ass)!” Throwing her hands in the air would likely have been entertaining to Dabi if the circumstances weren’t so immediate. 

“That’s not important right now,” holding up his hands to ward off any cursing and yelling from the purple feathered hero, time was of the essence, “what is important is this, you’re a _hero_ , right? Heroes help others, right?” 

Rolling her eyes, apparently Saku wasn’t in the mood for banter, which was fine by Dabi. “What? Is your _gatito_ (kitten) stuck in a tree or something?” 

Halting, he hadn’t really expected her to nail the problem so quickly, much less guessing it correctly, “Actually, yes. Can you help me? I would normally ask someone else but they’re busy for the foreseeable future and I’m in a hurry.” 

Widening her eyes in interest, a brow rose in question; likely if this was another trick on his part or not. Sighing, Dabi couldn’t help but think, _‘of all the nights that this could have happened, surely the Goddess is laughing at my negligence tonight.’_ Pulling a can of treats from his coat, Dabi began shaking the can erratically in his hands and making clicking noises that normally caused his large cat to respond. 

As though in response a loud yowling noise echoed through the trees, like a creature that was in pain. Feeling his chest pound in reflex, Dabi took a few calming breaths to ease himself. Everything was fine, with Saku here it would be fine, Keigo likely wouldn’t respond to his call for help for a while and Dabi knew that he deserved the man’s ire. 

Walking through the forest confidently, Dabi only stopped long enough to tap the trees with runes to check which ones had the black and blue colored markers on them, it would be the most direct path to his cat.

“What are these runes for?” Saku asked from behind, her tone inquisitive as she trailed behind him, her interest piqued in having a traveling companion. 

“Well, should anyone ever try to raid or betray me, they’re set to explode on my command, security and that nonsense.” He waved a hand and from behind he could hear a chuckle, did she think he’d told a joke? Maybe that was for the best, Shigaraki and Stain had done the same but Dabi would make sure that when those two turned on him, _he_ would have the last laugh. 

“More importantly, my cat is dumb as hell and likes to go on walks. The runes help me find the paths that he takes. Anyone with the ability to use wild magic can tap into the rune but it can only locate the cat, nothing more.” 

“Exactly how often does your cat get lost out here that you needed to make these runes so _extensive_?” 

Scratching his head, he thought about it. Those runes had been made the better part of twelve to fifteen years ago with Keigo’s aid; it was the only way to ensure that the beast wouldn’t be lost indefinitely. “When he was younger, once a day at least, nowadays, probably once a week. He’s gotten better about not straying too far from the castle but he usually gets caught up in chasing random animals and insects, and before long he’s lost.” 

Shaking the can once more, the yowling sound continued on in response. Tapping the nearest marked tree, Dabi made a sharp right turn towards a small opening that led to the northeastern plains where the arabis dinch tended to roam. The cat must have seen one of the creatures and decided to try to bring the kill back. Looking up towards the upper portion of the tree, there was a definitive bend in the tree where he must have climbed up to. 

Shaking the can once more, the upper tree shook as another miserable yowl echoed. _‘Rey you tonto del culo, couldn’t stay in the castle until this all blew over! No you couldn’t, you damn glutton!’_

“Wait, is that a _fucking_ leoglet!” Saku snapped from behind him, turning to look at her, a dawning look of realization came over her features. 

“I would argue that he’s still a pangle since his coat hasn’t shed colors. Pangles have a dark coat, and leoglets have a very light-colored coat. However, this is why I really needed you, could you go up there and bring him back down here?” 

Understandably, her jaw dropped, much like Keigo’s did the first time Dabi had requested that the winged man go up to retrieve the overgrown feline. Especially since – 

“Why doesn’t he just fly down? Doesn’t he have wings?” 

“Rey has a fear of heights _and_ he can’t fly. Flying makes him so anxious he starts molting his feathers.” Looking up at the overgrown feline, Dabi noted how Rey had finally noticed that help had arrived as his rampant yowling changed to pitiful mewling noises, his light blue eyes practically glowing in the evening light as the cat tried to stay as still as possible. 

The last time he’d gotten excited over help arriving, his tail and wings had beat around so much he’d broken the branch. The only benefit to that was he hadn’t left Dabi’s side for the better part of a month for fear that the ground would fall out from under him. 

“Dabi,” Saku emphatically stated, “he has to be a fully grown leoglet!” 

“Nah, he’s just my baby pangle, full of love and steak. There’s no need to make accusations about his character now. That would be _very_ unbecoming of a hero, wouldn’t you agree?”

Rubbing her temples, Saku took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Once she was done, she clapped her hands together and pointed at Rey, never losing eye contact, “Okay, exactly how _big_ is your pet _pangle_ then?” Saku asked him, her tone incredulous. 

Turning to look at Saku, her hand was buried in her hair as she looked up at Rey, who gave another mewling cry for help. Running both of her hands through her hair for a moment, she didn’t drop them immediately, her gaze focused yet contemplative. Even her wings began to twitch, possibly in time with her racing thoughts. 

Scratching his head, Dabi knew that this was a tall order to ask of Saku, especially since he’d likely broken Keigo’s trust in Saku as well as himself. Regardless of how many times he told himself that this was all for the _greater good_ , there was still a part of him that resented what he’d done. 

“He weighs about 54 kilograms (120 pounds), give or take! If you use some of your feathers to hold him up, it should be an easy enough job!” Dabi chuckled as Saku blanched at the weight of the cat. Seeing her ball her fists at her side, there were strings he still needed to pull, in order to get all of the pieces together. 

Dabi had resolved himself to this fate, of being the villain of his own world. The truth was that they were all running out of time. The time of the Final Star is coming when the Goddess Kuralf Desor will leave this plane and life will cease. 

“What exactly do I get out of helping you get your cat out of this tree? You’ve been nothing but a pain in the ass since I’ve gotten here!” Quirking her brow, it was true, she had no reason to trust him, much less getting Rey out of the tree. With his luck, the tree would catch fire if he lost his cool trying to climb up the tree. That was something Dabi didn’t want to repeat, especially where most of the world thought of him as being a natural disaster as it was. No need to add fuel to _that_ fire. 

“I’ll tell you what Saku, if you can retrieve Rey for me, I’ll answer one question that you have but only one.” Quirking a grin at the hero, an odd blush burned its way across her cheeks, running a hand through his hair, hopefully that would be incentive enough for her. 

At the end of the day, Saku and Desca were the only keys to their salvation. Which meant that any sacrifice would be well worth it in the end. For this world, as well as the world that they came from, which surely must be in turmoil as well! 

In a flash Saku had taken off towards the tree, a seed of opportunity having been planted and rooted tightly. “You’d better keep your word, _Dabi_!” She shouted as she took flight quickly working her way up the tree to where the overgrown cat was now waiting patiently. 

Running a hand through his hair, Dabi couldn’t help but prepare himself for what she may want to know more about. Would she want to know more about his relationship with Keigo, before he was the famed Hawks?

Maybe she would want to know how he had managed to stay one step ahead of her and all of the heroes? 

How did she and Desca come to be in this world and how did he know about them?

Had there been others that had been transported here? 

What did all of this mean in the grand scheme of things?

At this point there had already been other heroes who had tried to stop the star but the reality was, they had all been cogs, working to build this world's magic into a sort of stasis until the proper time came. Mother Marisol had seen this, as had the other oracles from their world. 

Mother Marisol had seen who the chosen heroes would be and the energies that would converge to create the catalyst. She had been in this world for ten years before she had disappeared. Looking towards Saku, she reminded him a lot of Mother Marisol, and the language that she had taught him. To hear it, even when it was spoken in anger towards him, brought back countless memories of the way things had been.

Saku kept afloat in front of Rey who lifted his body, as he would if Keigo were the one to retrieve him. Even from this distance, Dabi could see Rey’s anxiety of being so high off of the ground. 

Ironically this reminded him of when Samara had seen the spells that needed to be enacted but she hadn’t had the power to perform the task. Instead, she had spent her time here preparing the grounds to enact the spell. She had spent her time here, learning and studying whatever she could get her hands on. In the end, she managed to stay for three years before she disappeared. 

Shaking his head a bit, Dabi watched as Saku dislodged some feathers from her wings, making sure to place them intricately under the large cat that continued to mewl and cry some more. Telepathically, Saku tried to will the feathers to come to her; which happened shakily with Rey’s added weight. 

Again his mind wandered to Magnus who had had the strength to cast the initial Ouroboros spell onto Dabi’s body and had created a way for him to pass it onto others so that it would generate the necessary energy. Their friendship had lasted for a year before his magic had dissipated and he along with it. Sighing, Dabi came back to the present and chuckled at the sight of the purple winged hero that was keeping the large black and white spotted cat towards the ground.

For an added measure, Saku wrapped her arms around the large cat that was now beginning to panic. Yowling once more and flailing in the open air, Dabi could hear Saku’s curses from the ground when Rey’s tail began to bang around erratically. 

It reminded him of Kyla and her own pet that she had found while in this world. She had been the herald for the events to come, which he had detailed notes over. Her time had been brief and their friendship fast. Her time should have been longer, but under the circumstances of the first warning, neither of them had been able to foretell the avalanche that would take her life. 

Desca showed up the day that Kyla had disappeared, a true sign of things to come. As the anchor, Desca should be able to hold out the longest and Saku as the key . . . it was hard to say. Their time was precious to say the least, and every second would count. 

As Rey and Saku grappled with one another, Dabi made sure that the moment that Rey’s feet landed on the ground he held his arms outstretched for the barreling cat, whose tail caught Saku’s face as he raced away. Preparing himself for the large cat, Dabi didn’t have long to wait as Rey launched himself, his front legs on either side of his head as Dabi supported the cats lower body, his tail wrapping securely around his waist. 

“Where the hell did you find a cat _that_ big?!” Saku spat as she put the feathers back into her wings. 

Widening his eyes in surprise, that wasn’t what Dabi had prepared himself to say but true to his word, he would give her an answer to any one question. Smirking, Dabi made sure that Saku could see his face from around Rey’s body as he responded. 

“I rescued him from a _freak_ fire accident that happened in this forest about fourteen years ago. I found this little guy the same day I met Keigo actually, budding relationship ever since.” Turning on his heel, it would certainly be a long walk back to the castle, especially since Rey would outright refuse to walk once, he’d been plucked from his hiding spot. The black bodied and white spotted cat buried his nose into the coat’s hood and began to loudly purr, the rumbling noise making his body feel like it was quaking. “Have a good one, hero.” 

Rubbing his head against Rey’s it wasn’t until they were out of sight from the purple winged hero that he heard a resounding shriek that caused some nearby birds to take flight. “That’s odd, wouldn’t you say so Rey?” With a huff the cat nuzzled against him, “Don’t worry, I’ll make you a nice steak when we get back.” 

***** Saku’s POV *****

Storming back into camp, I didn’t bother with being quiet. After stabbing every tree on the way back that had a rune on it, this night had been more than just a bust. The Hindenburg might as well have been an _oops_ in comparison to this debacle! 

Throwing a fist against the trunk of the nearest tree, I couldn’t even feel the pain of the action. Going at the tree again, it felt great to vent like this, but it only made the rage in me continue to burn.

_‘How could I have wasted the only **opportunity** we had! On asking about his stupid cat?!’ _ Seething, I grabbed my bag and threw it against the nearest tree. I didn’t even care if something broke inside of it.

Because of _me_ , we were once again back to square one! Biting my hand, I couldn’t stop the hot tears from rolling down my cheeks. 

Everyone’s hard work, determination, and having to _literally_ fight off nature . . . and the answers had been handed to me. Only for me to fuck it up when it would matter _most!_

“God dammit!!!” Screaming into the tree, I threw one more punch at the tree before giving my bag one final kick, a definitive breaking noise coming from the action. 

“Saku, what the hell is wrong with you?! Do you even know what _time_ it is?!” Maya shouted from her tent. 

From the tree where Twice was tied up came boisterous laughter from the deranged man, who had probably known all along that they were chasing shadows through this damnable forest. For the last. Four. Days! 

“Fuck it, I’m going to bed.” 

Maya glared at me as I moved around and got ready to lay down and just as I closed my eyes, even while tears continued to roll down my cheeks and my hand began to throb in pain. 

In the darkness of camp I could hear her quietly mumbling, “well fuck you too then…” 

**TBC**


	9. Points of Various Views

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has something that they hide from the world and sometimes, we hide it from ourselves

**KEIGO’S POV**

Rustling through the trees, Keigo didn’t bother to slow down, lest more misfortune follow in his wake. Whether or not the wizard was aware of it, one of Touya’s wayward spells had managed to attach itself to him, and the results were maddening. 

Trying to keep his wings close to his body, it was impossible to know what damage they would cause in the surrounding area. He had already ruined so much of the forest as it was, one wrong flap and another swath of the forest floor may disappear. His wings were not capable of feats like this on their own, his magical ability only allowed him to fly and mentally control his feathers. 

Running past the scene of destruction next to him, Keigo could still hear the snapping of tree trunks, the screams of the animals in the forest and the way the ground split from the wind that had forced its way through. Holding his arms close, the need to take flight was nearly all consuming. To just, get away from all of _this_. 

Sadly, that was what had caused the scene of destruction next to him in the first place. Against his will, his feathers flickered and twitched. Each feather picking up the distant noises of the felled trees and everything that had been inhabiting them. Slamming his hands over his ears, it was a fruitless endeavor, as the feathers continued to twitch, the reverberations entered his body. 

Gritting his teeth, his whole body felt like it was a tuning fork set to pick up the sounds of devastation around him. There was only one explanation for this impossible feat, _wild magick_. 

In his youth, there had been a time when the thought of controlling wild magick had been fanciful. To be someone with power that could be drawn from the earth and the devastating properties. 

When he’d grown up with nothing, that thought alone had driven him to seek out how he could seek out the Great Goddess’ favor, so that she might impart him with the power to change this world. He who had been born with a power deemed alien by the masses, surely the Great Goddess could have taken his wings from him to give him something more common, more _normal_. 

How naive that thought had been, for then he had been swept up in Touya’s affairs. Like a glutton for punishment, he had agreed to anything and everything so that he could fit in amongst a group that he could call his own. 

***FLASHBACK***

“So you want to learn about magia salvaje?” Touya had looked over at him, his turquoise eyes thoughtful. “Mother Marisol taught me but I might be able to give you a few pointers.” Touya’s shock of white hair bounced as the boy got to his feet. 

“Yeah!” Keigo had bounced to his feet as well, although he had nearly fallen over. His wings had been damaged from the fire and were healing at a slower rate than usual. 

Following Touya deeper into the forest, they hadn’t stopped moving until they came to a small river that was fed from the north-western mountains that bordered Kohera. Taking a seat on the ground, Keigo made sure to follow everything Touya did down to the letter. 

“Mother Marisol taught me that to reach out and understand magia salvaje, you need to understand the peace of the world. I’m still not entirely sure what she meant by that,” Touya rolled his shoulders until he could hear an audible popping noise, “but she sat like this until it happened.” 

Giving the other boy a droll stare, surely he had to be joking. “You don’t know how to do it either, do you?” 

Burning bright red, Touya had tried to explain it, to no avail. It wasn’t until Marisol had found them in the evening that Touya had owned up to the fact that he was still learning how to harness and control the unruly magic that he had been born with. 

However, Marisol had at least taught him to find the inner peace that Touya had tried to describe at the time. 

“Mijo, when you find yourself lost, that is when you should be looking _beyond_ yourself. Magia salvaje is magic that requires you to understand your place in the world and how you are connected to something bigger than yourself.” Holding out her hand, Keigo saw how the physicker used her ability, the ethereal tendrils sprouting away from her palm like an unfurling flower. 

“My power isn’t easy to understand and for that I apologize, so think of it like this, when your feathers move, they readjust for any number of reasons. It can be for your comfort, maneuverability, even just adjusting to changes in the wind currents when you fly. Your power allows to directly control your wings and what they do, but they also react subconsciously, whether or not you are aware of the reason.” 

“Touya’s power on the other hand,” she gestured over towards the boy as he rested on his cot at the castle. “Although his power can easily run amok if he doesn’t control himself, his powers rely on him to _actively_ start his power. Think of that need to start one’s powers as a safety switch.” Marisol sat next to him, her dark hair catching the incoming rays of moonlight and illuminating the flower in her hands. 

“That safety switch is what keeps each of us in the here and now. By opening our awareness and connecting the thing that defines you.” She used her hand to gently press her finger against Keigo’s chest where his heart was, “You can connect yourself to others through your shared _connection_. If you practice creating and understanding that connection, you can begin to understand magia salvaje and your connection to the world around you. From the tiniest creatures to the largest, the things you can see before you to the things you cannot.” 

“What do you mean by things that I can’t see?” Keigo swung his feet to and fro, surely there had to be more to it than that. Maybe neither of them could describe what was going on? 

“Let me show you, take my hand Keigo.” Doing as he was told, Keigo slid his hand into Marisol’s, her skin was darker than his own and contrasted as such in the darkness. “Now, close your eyes little one and I will show you what I mean.” 

Diligently, he’d obeyed and waiting for any following directions. Although he didn’t have to wait at all, as he could _feel_ Marisol’s power activate. Where their hands were connected, he could feel Marisol’s power reaching out and pulling him in, like when the tides of the sea would push and pull debris to the shore. 

“That sensation is how the world works, mijo.” It felt like Marisol was speaking to him, however Keigo didn’t recognize the feminine voice that was speaking to him, “There are forces that will push you away and others that will pull you in. There is no need to fight this motion, as it is necessary for each of us to grow. When you understand magia salvaje, you can draw on this power. However, the way you understand this power is incredibly personal to each individual. Like Touya,” Keigo could feel how he was being moved towards Touya’s power, like a campfire. 

Although his eyes were not open, it still felt like he was looking at a campfire, the way that the flames would rise, and fall was similar to the ocean waves. When the flames would become weak, there was still enough of a spark to propel the flames to new heights and the cycle would repeat. 

“This is how Touya perceives his connection to the world. Through the range that his flames can reach, he understands that not all those connections will last. However, if he tends to the fire, it will maintain the equilibrium that is necessary for him to maintain his connection.” 

“How do I find my connection though?” Keigo whispered. 

The feminine voice chuckled, and the sound made a warmth spread throughout his chest. “That connection has already been started by these two. Keep practicing and you will eventually find your way to me. Have faith and may the arrow be your guide.” 

*** I ***

“Well well, little bird, what can I do for you today?” It was like being in a haze, how his legs had just taken him to Touya, without him even thinking about it. 

“I’m not dealing with your shit,” Keigo looked over at Touya, who for once actually looked somber and sober, “not today.” Running his fingers through his hair, everything in him felt like it was stuck on flight. Like his whole body just needed to get away but the source of his anxiety could not be found. 

Huffing, maybe he wasn’t as sober as Keigo had initially thought, as the man threw back a familiar bottle with amber liquid inside. “Far be it from me,” he hiccupped as he slumped against a nearby tree, “to give you anything to deal with, K.” 

“Pray tell, what exactly has you, _drinking_ ?” Sitting down across from the wizard, Keigo made sure to spread his wings out so that he could get comfortable on the ground, as well as to keep the wizard’s attention. 

Lolling his head to the side, it looked to be uncomfortable as Touya seemed to be resting his head on his shoulder, or he was trying to find a way to keep the world around him from spinning. Touya had always been a lightweight when it came to fermented items, usually to his own detriment. 

“The prophecy is coming true, K, and I don’t know what to do anymore. Everything I do, everything I try to do, turns to ash.” Huffing, a small flame burst forth from his mouth, but it quickly died out as Touya began to grumble and at this point sulk. 

“The one that Marisol used to talk about? The end of days?” 

“The very same.” He stared down at his bottle for awhile before setting it aside, his gaze steady, albeit his body still seemed unsteady. “I scryed and searched, meditated and prayed, tried communing with whatever would listen and all I’ve got to show for it is a singular message. _Follow the arrow_ . I don’t know what the hell it means at this point, K.” Stretching, Keigo could hear the bones in Touya’s body pop as he tried to focus. “I’ve done _everything_ that Mother Marisol told me to look out for but it all feels for naught.” 

“Yeah, you’d mentioned that a while back but are you sure you just didn’t misunderstand something?” Prophecies were usually a dime a dozen and most of them weren’t meant to be understood, rather they were meant to warn to be aware of the anomalies that would enter one's life. 

He shook his head before slouching against the tree, his gaze now towards the sky. “I keep seeing _signs_ of what’s to come, K. I have followed and done what I can. I heeded to words of the Seer, learned the magicks of the Caster, implemented and imbedded the magicks of old with the Sealer, I found the one called the Call . . .” 

“Touya -” Keigo looked over at the man who looked as though he was about to fall apart, one of his hands now buried into his hair, another hand seemingly holding onto his face. “Don’t let a prophecy dictate who you are. You’ve stayed in this forest looking for answers, but I’m worried you’re just chasing shadows.” Sighing, even though he had initially searched for Touya to remove the curse, maybe this would also be a moment for them to mend the connection that had been lost, to both of their obsessions. 

Lowering his hands from his face, Touya instead left them on his lap, a quiet and pensive look on his face. “I’m not insane, Keigo.” He met his gaze and Keigo could see that his mind was unfettered from the usual insanity that he’d been forced to endure between society branding him a practitioner of wild magick as well as an outcast and all of the horrors that that could entail. “The magicks of the planet are shifting, every night the sky grows darker, our days become shorter and nights longer. Creatures that used to reside in the darkest corners of our country now roam the countryside as though they are to be the next rulers of the land. The living are constantly ill and suffering and the dead cannot move beyond the gate. Something is very wrong; and every sign points towards the crowning of the Serpent’s Tail Prophecy. 

“All that is left is to bring the Anchor and the Arrow to the core of our world and perform the spell that will realign the magicks of our world and the others that are connected to this world. Without the realignment, our world will begin to erode and the catalytic end will inevitably destroy those other worlds that are connected to our own. The planet is screaming and I am forced to listen.” He said softly, his voice hoarse with emotion as his fist slammed into the ground. 

Tapping Touya’s outstretched leg, Keigo began to cross his legs and hold a steady meditative pose. “Let’s seek out the answer together, Touya. Surely, I can help in some way.” 

“Way to be the hero, K.” 

“I can go back to where I came from _easily_ and leave you in a drunken stupor in the middle of the woods.” 

Snorting, Touya followed his motion and began to meditate, “Please, I’m never lost in this forest, I’m just constantly misplacing my pangle.” 

“Rey got out again?” It wasn’t completely surprising, the pangle was as skittish as they came, one time he ran away after his own shadow had scared him. Damn thing went missing for the better part of a day-and-a-half. 

“Toga spooked him when he was napping.” He chuckled fondly over the incident, “However, Saku helped get him out of a tree since you disappeared the other night. What was that about anyway?” 

Rolling his eyes, he had tried to return to help with the plea for help but something had kept him from returning. “I went to Jusa, caught wind of a possible lead to your prophecy. Wound up being a hoax from a kid that was angry at his dad.” Rolling his shoulders, they were still stiff from that flight to the city that sat at the edge of the forest and the beginnings of the desert. “Tried to work my way back but my powers began acting up, I had to walk from the leoglet territory to here.” 

“Your powers have been acting up?” Keigo opened his eyes and saw that Touya was looking at him, his eyes concerned as his brows were furrowed as he looked along Keigo’s wings and body for any sign of injury. 

Tapping his hand gently, the anxiety of the last few days must have been riding on him hard. There was no reason to bring it to Touya’s attention at this point, it was plainly important to try to get the man uninvolved in the current situation with the prophecy, Saku and Desca and all of the hubbub with ‘the misalignment of the elemental magicks’. “It’s not a big deal, it might have just been from exhaustion, I’ve been feeling out of sorts as it is, so I should have been expecting _something_ to happen.” 

“A dog may think it’s a cat if it’s raised without another of its kind around but a fish will never forget how to swim, just as a bird doesn’t fall from the sky. Take my hand, nevermind my problem, we need to get you sorted out.” 

Shaking his head, Keigo did as he was told knowing that the doctor in Touya wouldn’t give up so easily. Closing his eyes, Keigo grasped both of Touya’s hands and slowly began to breathe in and out until their breathing was in sync. Then it was a matter of feeling the energies around them and projecting into a form that would make it easier to manifest in. 

“Well you’ve gone and gotten yourself into a pickle haven’t you, Keigo.” Touya’s form was illuminated by the rising and falling flames that he recalled seeing from his childhood. His flaming form had developed, likely as a result of his continued progress with his powers, the flames that were once like a campfire now roared in a similar light to his turquoise eyes. “Your powers are unstable.” The way the flames danced against his incorporeal form made him realize that Touya was testing to see how his magick was flowing throughout his body, an effective means of diagnosing someone in this form. “You’re in conflict with recent events and a curse has brought out your potential to perform wild magick. Normally, this would be fine, however, your emotional state has caused your power to work against you.” 

“Think you can fix it?” 

“Child’s play, K, don’t joke about these things.” The flames once more licked against his form, a feeling of comfort flowing into him. “However, you’re going to have to get the ball rolling on part of it.” 

“How so?” 

“You need to make a solid connection to your wild magick affiliation. That will stabilize your power and allow you to start controlling your power, instead of your power controlling you.” In this incorporeal world, Keigo always saw himself as he did every day, but from his time with Touya and Marisol, unlocking wild magick shifted how your magick and spirit could interact with the world - something to do with opening a ‘connection’. 

“Then we’ll work on moving the curse. It eats emotions but when it can’t feed on your day-to-day emotions, the curse will stimulate emotions that it can feed on. Think of it like an emotional leech, kind of like your girlfriend.” 

Furrowing his brows, it wouldn’t matter at this point if he rolled his eyes, Touya would be stuck on his own theories and beliefs. Instead, it would be easier to just deal with the insanity and to work through whatever this was. “Saku doesn’t leech anything from me, frankly, I’m not sure what we are right now, after that stunt you pulled in the forest.” Running a hand through his hair, maybe there was something to be said for his _emotional state being unstable_ . 

“I feel like she doesn’t trust me. What if she gets the wrong idea about us? Everything up to this point has been me keeping information from her. I could have guessed from the start that she was not from _here_ , there were plenty of signs for that! I figured she was just from Kitabe or Yoporro, I’d heard rumors of people who had the ability to fly generally lived in that area.” 

Snorting for a moment, Keigo looked at Touya, who’s fire now danced with his bridled laughter, “It never occurred to you that she could have been like Mama Marisol? Que lindo K, pero no.” (how cute K, but no) 

“I’ve just never met someone else that had wings. Whereas there are plenty of people that can use fire as part of their core magick. Wind is so uncommon to find anymore, I guess I wound up getting ahead of myself. Maybe, _I_ was the one that was pushing her to feel like she had to be more than she was?” 

“Don’t be like that, she’s a spitfire for sure but she never lied to you. The truth was in front of both of us, that is all there is to it. Now, let us focus on unlocking your full potential. Imagine the core of your power linking up to mine, to the world, hell even to Rey or Saku. Create a connection that you can impart your spirit into and delve into what makes you, you.” 

Focusing on the sensation of being tied to everything around him had not worked in the past, and quite frankly it had been an overwhelming experience that had landed him in Touya’s care the last time they had tried this, however, it felt different this time. As Keigo imagined his feathers reaching out to those that he cared about, a single thought filled his mind. 

_Follow the arrow. Follow the arrow. Follow the arrow._

Imagining an arrow, it was not until now as his feathers - the core of his power - began to shift and change. Before, whenever he would push and pull his power out, the feathers would begin to travel and then swiftly fall to the ground as though nothing could propel them on their path. Although the feathers still moved, for once it did not feel like there was any effort to the action, as the feathers shot out, the wind around the feathers pushed the barbs like the fletching of an arrow and pulled the wind underneath only to push it once more forward on an unknown path. 

Although Keigo knew that he was sitting in the middle of the forest with his eyes closed, there was so much more that he was seeing, vibrant colors that he didn’t have names for. An interconnected mass of energies that flowed throughout the land, following a vibrantly purple one, the current that propelled his feathers indeed took him to Saku. 

Her form was an epicenter of intertwined energies and colors that branched out across the campground. A lilac-colored thread went towards Shoto, a silver thread towards Maya, a gunmetal grey colored thread went towards Desca, his own thread was a vibrant and almost bloody looking red, while Dabi’s was a soft turquoise color. 

As his feathers interacted with the different colored threads, Keigo knew immediately who each thread correlated to, except for one. It was a shadowy thread that was attached to each person, however as Keigo’s feathers ran along the thread, there was a familiarity to it, like a presence he had seen once before. 

The shadowing thread spread across the ground and the air like a spider web woven together in ink. The strands were firm and unyielding, following along the strand did not give him any clarity as to the nature of the thread nor whom it belonged to. 

“Word to the wise K, don’t follow that thread, it’ll drive you mad.” Feeling the break in the connection, Keigo was slammed back into his body with a painful snap that left him curling into the ground. Gasping, each breath burned like fire in his lungs, however, no matter how hard he tried to breathe in, it was like his lungs were not accepting the air and it left him grasping the ground as he tried to stop the sensation from strangling him. 

“Dammit Keigo, that’s on me. Try drinking this.” Touya thrust a canteen into his hand, without a second thought, Keigo downed the water that ended the agony in his chest, but still left in its wake a sense of exhaustion.

“What the _fuck_ just happened?” Keigo curled his wings around his body as his body began to shiver and jerk uncontrollably. 

“You lost your concentration,” leaning back against the tree, Touya did not look to be in much better shape than himself, had something happened to him as well? “Or it might be better to say, _something_ interrupted your connection. Word to the wise, do not break connection before you have come back to your body’s general area. The whiplash and nausea will go away after a while, in the meantime, we’ll have to get comfortable with misery.” 

“Do you happen to know what that _something_ was?” Keigo groaned as his head began to throb, burrowing his head into his hands, this was significantly worse than any hangover he’d ever had. 

“Something old enough to be connected to every living thing, I feel pressured to say the Goddess Kuralf Desor or her counterpart Death because I feel like I’m dying _every time_ that happens.” Turning his head so one of his eyes was looking at Touya, the man looked to be in worse shape each passing minute. Drinking from his small canteen of water, Touya groaned as he whipped a knit hat out of his cloak and threw it over his head so that it would cover his eyes. 

“To solve your second problem, you can’t remove your curse, you can only pass it on to someone else and after tonight, you’ll probably want to for multiple reasons. All you gotta do is get some emotions running high and make contact with someone else who reflects that same emotion that you are feeling. Got any mortal enemies with a grudge against you any secret lovers you want to fool around with? Situations like that are always the easiest to work with in my experience.” 

“No current enemies and I think my sex life is a moot point right now.” Looking back at the ground, Keigo tried to focus on his breathing to keep it as steady as possible even though the sensation of vomiting kept crossing his mind. 

“If you puke on me, I will light you on fire, Keigo.” 

“I was certain you were planning on doing that at some point as it was.” 

“Eat shit and die, Keigo.” 

“Yeah and fuck you too, buddy.” 

They both groaned in agony as the nausea forced them both to the ground where they proceeded to recollect on the better days, recent issues and then they both did their usual binding spell that kept them from telling others what they’d talked about. A failsafe to protect them both, just in the event the worst case scenario ever occurred, the spell would keep them from speaking. If they tried to there would be dire consequences and immediate gastrointestinal distress. It was childish but neither of them wanted to be caught in public with that kind of embarrassment over their heads. 

**DESCA’S POV**

Looking over at Saku, she’d been out of it ever since this whole debacle with Hawks and Dabi. Desca’s fists shook at her sides as Saku was given a sedative after she’d managed to punch one of the trees hard enough she dislocated her thumb, bruised her knuckles, and likely had fractured some bones in her hand. Maya had mended what she could, particularly some gashes, cuts, and bruises across her body but it had pulled a lot of energy out of Saku and Maya to mend bones and flesh so quickly. Especially since some of the wounds couldn’t be immediately seen. That was when Saku and her had come to learn that Maya’s power worked best on injuries that she could see like lacerations, burns, and bruises. Things that were inside of the body took a little more effort and the failsafe was that it was easier to treat everything but it took so much more energy. Isolating the healing area could cause other areas to take on the strain of healing. 

So, using Shoto’s medical emergency supplies, the group had taken a collective vote to knock Saku out for at least the next day. Surprisingly, Twice had been in favor of knocking her out as well but then he had immediately redacted his vote when he found out it wouldn’t change his food rations. Whether out of spite or realization, when Saku had come back, the villain had decided he wanted to live long enough to figure out if he was really a clone or not. 

That had been an odd one sided yelling match that had ended with him having a tie with himself on whether or not he was the imposter. Rubbing her temples, Desca was still trying to figure that one out, his emotions ran so rampantly, she tried her best to stay away from the neurotic villain. 

Taking a few notes on what had happened so far on their journey, Desca had become diligent about writing things down in the book that she’d had since she woke up in the Kohera region. It wasn’t something she remembered owning, but it was the only thing she’d had to go off of. 

When she’d woken up in Kohera, the people had taken care of her and for that she would always be grateful, however that was also where the biggest mystery of this world came into play for her personally. The villagers had said she’d wandered into town after an avalanche had covered the nearby town of Kajeer. Since then the book had been in her possession. 

It was a simple black book with an engraving of an eye with a ouroboros snake design that acted as the pupil of the eye. There was nothing written in the book, although there were pages that were missing, a few towards the beginning and few towards the end. It had seemed like a waste to not try to use it, so she’d been using it as a diary . . . to ensure that she wouldn’t forget anything else. 

Setting the book back into her knapsack, it couldn’t be too much longer before Hawks made his grand appearance. As of late he’d been coming back to the camp late into the evening. At this point their investigation in the League of Villains and Dabi seemed like it was quickly coming to a dead end. However, there didn’t appear to be any sure signs that they were even going in the right direction at this point. Especially when Saku came back in the state that she’d been in, it was hard to say whether or not she would be able to travel on her own for a while. Although at this point she was healed, there was something inside of her that was broken and there was nothing that her power or Maya’s that could fix that. 

Shoto was content to let this play out as long as it needed to and from what she’d understood, Izuku would soon be by to assist with their search. Apparently, he was the leader of the scouting corp - if there was information to be had, then Midoriya would know about it. Apparently even in an alternate universe, he was still an information junky. 

Turning towards the sound of feathers brushing against the leaves and branches overhead, a few moments later, Hawks landed unceremoniously in the campsite. Running a hand through her hair, he likely wouldn’t take the next shift, it had reached the point the cycle was now between Shoto, Maya, and herself. 

Hawks was rarely around at this point, yet when he was he was always quick to turn around and leave for some other ‘scouting expedition’. With everyone turning up empty on leads for finding Dabi, it was suspicious that the villain’s biggest antithesis seemed lackadaisical and disinterested in looking for him. If anything it seemed like Hawks was in the business to directly misdirecting them from their mission at this point. 

It was fairly foundless to say as such, thus Desca had remained silent when it concerned the winged hero. However, the longer they stayed in the forest, the more cracks that seemed to appear in Hawks’ armour, there was definitely something that he was hiding. Although his outward appearance and attitude made everyone assume he was onboard, his emotions ran in direct opposition to his cause. 

As the winged knight stumbled into the camp, tonight felt different. The knight moved as though every step caused him pain and every so often he would weave and bob into a tree trunk. There didn’t appear to be any injuries on him, yet he seemed completely incapable of keeping himself upright. As he moved along the treeline of the camp towards his tent, he used his wings to keep from falling over as his wings acted as a counterweight as he stumbled through. 

He’d left in the early hours, before anyone had known that Saku was injured and now he returned as though he’d spent the entire day holding out in a bar. Although he didn’t smell of alcohol, the way his emotions would fluctuate was similar. Like a tide rolling towards and from the shore, one emotion bleeding into the next before peeling away to reveal another one underneath the undertow. 

Looking towards Hawks, if she was going to learn anything, it would require using her power. Although calling her power pathokenesis was simple in and of itself, there was so much more to it than that. The best way that Desca could think to describe her power, was that it allowed her to hone in on others emotions because she used her own body like a conduit to process those emotions. If she understood how someone was feeling, all she needed to do was readjust the emotion and reflect that change on her opponent. Afterall, emotions were caused by changes in chemicals in the body, honing in on the signals gave Desca access on how to manipulate those chemicals. 

Gently activating her ability, Desca felt the erratic throbbing of Hawks’ heart, how each breath burned, like vocal chords that had been abused through screaming. Her tongue burned and it felt like weights were dragging her to the ground. 

“I don’t know what you’re hiding, Hawks, but if you hurt Saku . . .” Desca’s fists shook at her sides as she glared vehemently at him, “I’ll make sure you live the rest of your life regretting it.” She spoke softly but made sure that her voice was steady. Even if she couldn’t take on the winged man, she wanted to make sure that he understood just how serious she was. 

Halting, Hawks took a few ragged breaths before turning towards her, his normally coy smile devoid of humor, the numbness that permeated her body proved just how empty the man was currently feeling. “Why would I hurt Saku, Desca? What have I done to make you believe that I want to do anything to her?” 

“You left her and she got seriously injured.” Glaring at the ‘knight’, everything about the man in front of her felt like a complete _farce_. “And _that_ is good enough for me to not trust _anything_ about you.” 

Raising his brow, the smile crumbled, and a dark look entered the man’s eyes. Normally bright like gold, his sharp eyes evaluated her like a predator looking at prey and the feeling did _not_ sit well with her. “If you thought any of this would be easy, then I think 

you’re the one that needs to be reevaluating your priorities in the grand scheme of everything going on. You and Saku need to get home, I can’t just drop everything to protect you both because you aren’t ready. I’ve done what I can to help Saku prepare for this journey and I _know_ about everything that happened in Kohera and Kajeer with _you_ . You’re more than capable of holding your own.” Running a hand through his hair, in the light from the fire it looked like Hawks had been sweating, his forehead covered in a sheen of sweat. “Here I thought you were planning to threaten my life, glad to know that that isn’t on the line tonight.” 

Staring the knight down, Desca wasn’t going to play games with Hawks, especially not when it came to her own safety and especially when it came to Saku’s. “That would be too easy,” Desca walked closer to the winged knight, never breaking eye contact, “besides, your emotions are killing you faster than _anything_ I could do to you.” Walking past the man, there was an audible thud as Hawks slammed his hand against the nearest tree. With a growl of impatience, he whirled around, his feathers scraping the ground in his pivot. 

Ever since Dabi had gotten involved, Desca had been able to sense that something was eating at the number one knight. Although emotions couldn’t think - they could give an idea of a person’s deeper subconscious state. 

The sour taste on her tongue, like sucking on a lemon, was the feeling of regret. When something felt like it was skittering across the skin, anxiety, when those _somethings_ burrowed into the skin, paranoia. “You think you’re so _fucking_ smart, that you have all of _this_ figured out.” He hissed at her, turning to give him a piece of her mind, his piercing eyes practically glowed as he glowered at her, “I have _nothing_ to hide Desca, everything that I’ve done up to this point, although inadvertent and circumstantial, has all been to _protect_ you and Saku. But _fuck_ me if you haven’t made it a _fucking_ endeavor from the start.” He snapped, the way her temple began to throb and her heart beat increased was a sure sign that Hawks was frustrated and that they were now going to talk about more important matters. 

Taking a glance towards the camp, it looked like everyone was asleep, nodding towards the treeline, Desca briefly saw how Hawks rolled his eyes, but nevertheless agreed to follow along. Once they were far enough away that a proper yelling match could occur, the walk had seemingly sobered the winged knight enough that his anger was now an odd calm. 

“Pray tell, Hawks, how have _I_ made your job so much harder than what it already was?” Crossing her arms, this had to be good, there wasn’t a lot of dirt that she had managed to accumulate since being here, except for some select events in Kohera that were accidents at best. 

“We don’t need to get into this, Desca, I’m burnt out from my night and this forest has a tendency to bring out the worst in people. We need to get along, I’m not as dense as you seem to think I am.” He took a deep breath and much like the previous times that Hawks came to camp, he’d somehow managed to calm he racing heart and numb himself to an inhuman level that left her power grasping at straws. If someone was unwilling to feel anything - her power was useless, there was nothing to manipulate into a frenzy. Anger was a tool - numbness was a hindrance. 

Knowing that he had the high ground, there had to be a way to break the facade that he had created, it would be the only way that she could get to the heart of what was going on. Opening and closing her mouth a few times, Desca looked towards the knight and like a fire that had been doused with gasoline, a hatred in her had been ignited. 

“Except, I think we _do_ need to hash things out, _Hawks_ . All you’ve done since we’ve been out in this forest is _scout_ , really though, what have you been doing lately? Because frankly, I don’t think you’ve been trying to actually _look_ for Dabi!” She clenched her hands until her nails bit into the palm of her hands before she unclenched them and looked towards Hawks. 

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, there was a throbbing sensation along her temple and the sensation of things burrowing into her skin. Refraining from scratching or investigating her skin, Desca instead focused on Hawks, his posture slack, but the increase in her heartbeat said that her anger was getting a rise out of the man. 

“Even if I _wasn’t_ looking for Dabi, my job requires me to look into a number of other cases that occur all across the land and sea. Did that ever occur to you, Desca? This week alone I’ve had to fly to Musutafu, Jusa, Rei, and Sengoya. This mission wasn’t the only thing that I’ve been assigned. I can’t keep my marks if I fall behind in my work, you’ve been in this world long enough to understand how the knighthood operates.” 

“You _fucking_ sellout!” She snapped at the knight, of course he would be just like the other knights in the area. A knight’s rank was dictated by the number of missions that they were able to complete. It was how the popularity of the position came into play. 

Maya had dreams of helping others and healing the ill using her ability, a noble act that would keep her in good standing with the public and the order, but she would likely never wind up in the upper echelon of knights. Whereas Hawks used his speed to knock out multiple missions without wasting any time at all. 

“Is this quest, just another _notch_ to add to your yearly total?!” Reeling back from Hawks, he was no better than the villains that they were hunting down at this point. 

“Don’t get your strings crossed, Desca. If _any_ of this was just to add to my score, don’t you think I would have turned you over to the authorities instead of having you come along on this quest to begin with?” He crossed his arms and the glare that he sent her way would have been lethal if it weren’t for the pangs of guilt that she felt thrumming against her chest. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Hawks.” Gritting her teeth, something in the back of her mind screamed that something was very wrong, that Hawks knew something that had to do with what happened in Kajeer and Kohera. Although she had been here for a month, there were pieces of her memory that were strangely missing. Most of her memory from when she’d first come to this world was absent. It was something that she hadn’t brought up to anyone, not even Maya or Saku knew, so how in the world could chicken-fried bird brain possibly know anything? 

Scoffing, Hawks only shook his head, and it may have been a trick of the light, but at this point his eyes looked like they were glittering with rage, “And how _convenient_ that you don’t. I read your file Desca, whether you remember or not. Genocide and murder aren’t so easily just swept underneath a rug. You’ve been on wanted posters for a little over two months now.” 

“Liar!” She snarled and before she could think her plan through, her fist was flying through the air towards Hawks. Whether or not the man had planned for her to snap, Desca could only guess as the man managed to grab her hand, the solid contact with his hand causing a jolt of fear and adrenaline to run through her. 

Obviously, Hawks wasn’t someone she could take on but there was _no way_ that she would have done any of what he was saying! “You have to be lying,” her voice cracked in a familiar way but the way she could feel his heart slow and the pin pricks around her eyes, sadness and sympathy, he wasn’t lying. 

“But, I’ve only been here a month longer than Saku!” She pleaded towards Hawks who only shook his head, her fist still firmly planted in his grasp. 

“There were reports of you a little over two months ago. I met with a man in Higama who said he ferried you to Sengoya and Kohera, he said you were traveling with a young girl that was wearing a hat with ears on it. Trying to get her home to Kajeer. But at the time you’d mentioned having traveled to Yoporro and Aoishi, which already destroys your alibi of having been here for a month. 

“The locals in Kohera had a similar story, you were with a girl who needed to get to her family in Kajeer. When you came back through Kohera, you were covered in blood and nearly died of hypothermia. You’d been buried in a recent avalanche in the area and had sustained serious wounds, most non-fatal but your memory was gone. The physician believed the trauma was too much for you and why your amnesia was so specific. An old friend of mine filled me in on that, not the report. The murder charges are circumstancial, there isn’t real proof but it’s the strongest theory right now.” 

“Then why didn’t anyone come for me? Did you know that I was there the entire time?” Looking up at Hawks, with how close they now were, there was something in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. A quiet storm that seemed to live inside of his irises and burned their way into her very soul. The silence of the forest was deafening to the point that event the wind wasn’t moving. It felt like the world around them was holding its breath. 

“I was looking into your case to see if you were actually guilty of your charges, if you were, I was going to bring you in, if not, then absolve you. A retired knight, Recovery Girl sent me regular updates about your condition. You weren’t causing any _illegal_ trouble, so I figured it would be best to leave you where you were. Without your memory you were only a danger to yourself, there was no reason to create more stress in your life. When Saku came to Musutafu looking for you, I figured having a face you recognized would help jumpstart your memory. So far, no dice.” Lowering her hand, there was a despondent look on Hawks face as he began to turn away from her. 

“You’re not a criminal, Desca. I don’t know what you are but you’re not that. Let’s bury the hatchet where it’s at. I’m not going to tell Saku or Maya about your checkered past but if you do remember.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, “Just know that I’ll listen. If there’s anything you can take away from this, I still love Saku, I intend to help both of you, and I’m in your corner, whether you want me there or not.” With that, Hawks left to return to camp and in his wake, the forest came alive with the sounds of insects chirping, nocturnal birds and animals making a cacophony of noise, and a harsh wind blew her hair away from the direction of camp. 

Crumpling to the ground, if the wind could talk, then the breeze right now felt like it was carrying the screams of dozens of people straight to her ears. Silence only came when the sound of a crashing mountain covered everything in a blanket of white and whether she intended it or not. Her mind went blank as a variety of emotions overcame her, all of them overwhelming but none of them had a name. 

Covering her eyes and pressing her palms on them, from somewhere in the forest her power had latched onto something that was either on the verge of death or the verge of life. Just to escape from the moment, Desca hurled herself in the maelstrom of emotions and allowed herself to be buried. 

***** MAYA’S POV *****

Whatever happened between Desca and Hawks, both came back to camp at different times. Hawks had given her a look before nodding and going off to his side of the campsite to sleep. The knight looked like he had been about to drop from sheer exhaustion. 

Desca came into camp a while after that, her posture about as enthusiastic as Hawks’. She stumbled over to her knapsack and withdrew a book with a distinct eye emblazoned on the cover. Maya had been meaning to ask Desca about the odd possession. It was so different from Desca’s other items that Maya had questioned whether or not the item actually belonged to Desca. 

However, there had never been a good time to bring up the odd book. Whenever Desca realized someone was looking at the object, she would quickly stuff it into her bag and either go to sleep or find a way to keep someone from potentially looking at the item. 

Whatever it was, Maya had just come to respect that wherever Desca went, that was where the book was going to go. Whatever was in it, the contents only mattered to Desca. 

Yet, whenever she saw it, it always managed to send a shiver down her spine. There was a strange aura that the book exuded. It always reminded her of that time she’d seen a haunted medallion in Shiji. It was said that the medallion had been haunted by the ghost of a woman who had been spurned in life when her lover had left her for someone else. Cursing anyone with misfortune, it seemed like the woman’s wish had come true as anyone who held the medallion would run into a series of unfortunate events. To keep the island of Shiji was sinking due to earthquakes, the locals had put the medallion on the woman’s grave and had soldered the item to her headstone so no one would get any dumb ideas. 

Just like the time with the medallion, as Maya looked at the book and sometimes it would occur consequently whenever she would look at Desca. The pit of her stomach would clench and goosebumps would immediately raise on her skin. The feeling was uncomfortable enough that Maya hadn’t tried to openly look at the book. Instead whenever the sensation hit, she’d always felt compelled to find literally anything else to do instead. 

Tending to the fire briefly, when Maya looked back up, Desca’s gaze was latched onto her own. Which under normal circumstances would make her heart flutter but there was something different this time. As their gazes were held, Maya couldn’t help but notice that the book was resting on her lap, Desca’s hand scrawling something onto the pages. When her gaze once more met Desca’s, a strange smirk was there instead. 

Strange because Desca didn’t normally smirk, she was an all or nothing sort of girl. However, as she continued to stare (and unsuccessfully tried to smile warmly back), that same cold feeling overcame her as her stomach felt like it was trying to eat itself. It was a clear message to say the least. 

_**It wasn’t Desca.** _

***** DABI’S POV *****

If there was anything that Dabi had managed to learn _multiple_ things from his spiritual expedition with Hawks. It was firstly, how to practice kumbaya in a way that was both sickening as well as necessary. Secondly, rewarding to know that they could still have moments like this where the line that had divided them, could still bring them together as allies. Which sadly made points three through five? Seven? A moot point. 

As he stumbled through the door of _his_ castle, it would normally be a source of solace between the silence of the abandoned corridors and the snoring of Rey. Instead, he was greeted with the sounds of Stain barreling through his cupboards in search of Goddess knows what this time. Upstairs he could hear the sound of a pot breaking, likely Shigaraki’s neuropathy acting up again or Kurogiri deciding that the pottery and cups were subpar and he was ‘cleaning up’ the undesirable ones. 

From somewhere deep within the castle he could hear Twice hooting and hollering, likely harassing Toga, Rey, or some other poor and unfortunate fool at this point. Rubbing his temples, this was getting out of hand. If the bastards weren’t going to do what they were getting paid for, then they needed to find a different occupation. 

Going up towards his personal wing of the castle, it was the only place that stain and Shigaraki refused to travel to due to. Which on one hand, he was grateful for but on the other, they likely would have kept bombarding him had he not set traps the entire way up. 

Running his hand along the weathered stonework, the castle had stood long and proud and when Mother Marisol had been here, it had been filled with love and laughter and was lit up for the world to see. Previously owned by the previous baron of Kajeer, Mother Marisol had won the castle in a bet from the man. Although Dabi couldn’t imagine what the baron would have wanted from the petite woman to begin with, that would be worth his castle and the lands that it resided on. 

As he went up the spiral staircase to his personal study, Dabi was honest enough with himself to be surprised that both Toga _and_ Rey were in the room. Something that rarely happened unless they were both hiding from company. 

“What are you doing up here so late, Toga?” It wasn’t as if she was forbidden from being here of course. He had taken the young girl on as an assistant a few months ago when Kyla had been around. Although the two girls hadn’t been on the best of terms, they had worked well together when it mattered most. 

Ever since Kyla had died, maybe that was when they had both lost their way. For some reason, Toga’s attachments to others were never in vain. When she’d found out that Kyla had died, something in her had broken and that had started the degradation and hatred that had been born in her towards Desca. To lose Maya to her as well, might as well have been a slap in the face and a stab in the back. 

“Couldn’t sleep, they’re being loud downstairs, so I came up here to hangout with Rey. Since then, we’ve just been stargazing.” As though to emphasize her point, she pulled her blanket over her shoulders and looked out the window, discreetly passing Rey a biscuit that he graciously took. 

“They certainly are a rambunctious bunch, aren’t they?” He agreed and went to the counter to pull some food from the cabinet. Grabbing some bread and two bottles with cups, one of water and one of wine, maybe they would have to hold out until they all went to sleep downstairs. 

“Things were better when Magnus and Kyla were here. They weren’t annoying.” Accepting the cup and wine cut with water and bread, Dabi placed himself next to Rey who rested his head on his thigh. The giant cat took up the entire couch but left enough room for him to fit. 

“Now now, don’t say that, Magnus used to sleepwalk and Kyla would sing when she bathed.” Chuckling at the memory, Dabi could see how Toga’s lips curled at the corners. “If I recall correctly, she even took your clothes a few times, you found that pretty annoying.” 

“It was,” she agreed softly, “but she would always leave her clothes in exchange, so it was fine. I would take those minor annoyances all over again over the damage that those idiots do. It feels like they’re trying to move in and I don’t want them here, Dabi.” 

Pulling a cream knit sweater up to her nose, it was one of the last things that Kyla had left before she’d gone on her quest to look for Desca. Her power had allowed her to make anything that she wrote into her book become reality. It was a power she had still been developing when she had died in the avalanche near Kajeer. 

One day she had tried asking the book questions only to learn that it would not work, so instead she had written where she would find the prophecy’s designated _anchor_. Dabi hadn’t thought to stop her, it would either work or it wouldn’t and that was what he’d been more interested in. 

“I don’t want to hate, Desca.” Her voice was muffled by the blanket and sweater and if she was crying, Dabi wasn’t planning to comment on it. “But every time I think of Kyla or Maya, I just feel my blood boil and everything becomes _red_ . My powers surge and all I want to do is consume her, to understand why I keep losing the people I love, to her.” Her voice had a hard edge to it but Dabi knew it was just a matter of having her get her emotions out instead of bottling everything up, it would only lead to her downfall. 

“I’ve taught you everything that I know, Toga. If you want to leave, pursue your own interests, become a physicker, you have the means and skill to become one. You know that I won’t stop you and if you decide to go, you’ll be owed your pay.” 

“What would keep me from taking the money and going after Desca?” 

“At this point? Your conscience. I’ll double it if you at least leave in the morning.” 

Turning towards him, her golden eyes looked at him critically, looking for any sign of the answer. Smiling at his assistant good-naturedly, Dabi wasn’t sure how much would get the job done downstairs but they would be finding out before too long. 

“I think Stain has stayed here long enough, don’t you?” Slowly nodding her head, Toga’s eyes were still contemplative, her brows furrowed in question. “I concocted a _unique_ tea that will _push_ all of Stain’s buttons in the worst way. Once he’s gone, I’ll just pay the others to leave, it’s not like they weren’t contracted anyway.” He shrugged disinterestedly as Toga’s smile broke out across her face. “I can’t guarantee that he won’t break any walls here, so I’d rather you not be nearby when he goes on his _trip_. 

Scratching behind Rey’s ears, he gave an appreciative purr, “I’ve just been feeling that there’s too mushroom in the castle as of late and that Stain needs to be introduced to a real fungi. The brew won’t hurt him but I can’t guarantee that he won’t hurt himself or others by being stupid.” 

“I can’t promise that I’ll be a good guy, Dabi, so, if we wind up on different sides of whatever is about to happen . . . Thanks for teaching me everything that you did and for giving me a place to live.” 

“Don’t get sentimental now, Toga, let’s just go to bed and see what the morning brings, shall we?” 

***** MIDORIYA’S POV *****

It may have very well been fourteen days, ten hours, one minute, and three seconds since the last letter that had gone between Shoto and himself but this wasn’t how they wrote to each other. It was missing their signature phrase and unless Shoto had dictated the letter to be written by someone else, this was not his handwriting either. 

Going to the aviary of the scouting corps he had his return letter prepared with everything that Shoto would need to know from what the scouts had learned in the last few days regarding a question that Bakugou had sent to him via a carrier pigeon to report to Hawks and Shoto. Tying the note to the leg of a falcon, it immediately left one the knot was secured. 

Inside the note detailed their recent discovery of multiple reports of earthquakes and avalanches in the region he was about to enter. Although Sengoya was close to his location, the mountainous region had managed to stay intact throughout the chaos that had been going on around the country. Fukako and Darai were dealing with flooding, Jusa had tornadic activity, and the city of Rei nearby had had a strange gale force cut through that had damaged part of their city and the nearby forest pushing the leoglet and aramoose population into the prairie lands. It was still snowing in Kohera and Kajeer and the arabis dinch population had become more active. 

Momo’s scouting group this morning had located Stain, surprisingly on his own en route to Shoto’s location. Sending their fastest falcon, Deku, the bird should be there in an hour’s time, hopefully it would be soon enough that Shoto and his group could be on the move. 

Izuku had also managed to input Dabi’s castle’s coordinates, however the last scout that was near the castle had been blown up by a tree, a phenomenon that the scouting corps was still looking into. He had warned to remain at a distance but to keep an eye out for the wayward villain in case it was a ruse to cut off their attempt to escape. There hadn’t been any information as of late for the location of the villains Kurogiri, Twice, Shigarak and Toga. 

And silence was the last thing the scouting corps wanted to deal with . . .

“Grandmaster All Might, I have the day’s report for you.” Entering the room, the retired knight had taken well to working with the scouting corps, even though he didn’t really know what to do with the lot of them. 

“Good morning young Midoriya, come in and sit down, we’ve a lot to talk about.” 

“Indeed sir.” 

**TBC**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone was wondering about Saku (I know Saku is wondering about Saku), she has been hurt and is unconscious for this chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to my editors: Exxie23 and D_Schneider


End file.
